About this Research Topic
Building on the Millennium Development Goals, the UN Sustainable Development Goals are the cornerstone of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, billed by the UN as “An Agenda of unprecedented scope and significance.” The seventeen ambitious goals, which are intended to be reached by 2030, are conceived as integrated, indivisible, and as balancing the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. They are organized around five core pillars:
• People: ending poverty and hunger and ensuring that all human beings can lead fulfilling lives in a healthy and dignified environment.
• Planet: protecting the environment while ensuring sustainable use and management of natural resources.
• Prosperity: ensuring environmentally sustainable economic growth, mutual prosperity, and decent work for all.
• Peace: building societies that are peaceful, just and inclusive, and in which human rights and gender equality are respected.
• Partnership: strengthening global solidarity to address inequalities within and between countries, by focusing on the needs of the most vulnerable.
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This Research Topic addresses the sixteenth Sustainable Development Goal, which is to “promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies”. Progress toward this goal is measured by a number of individual targets and indicators.
In its most recent SDG progress report, the UN notes how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed discrimination and inequalities and has tested, weakened, and sometimes damaged protection systems and rights in territories and countries. The world is still far from achieving the goal of building peaceful, just and inclusive societies: millions of people are currently living in fragile and conflict-affected areas (in 2019, 79.5 million people have been displaced with force worldwide and around 437,000 people were victims of homicide), and almost 28.5 million out of school children in primary school age live in areas afflicted by war.
Moreover, violence against children was widespread even before the pandemic, with more than 1 billion children affected around the world, costing societies up to US$ 7 trillion a year. In addition, in 2019 the percentage of prisoners held in detention without being sentenced remained at 31% of the total prison population.
By 2030, this Goal aims at significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates worldwide; manage to end exploitation, trafficking, abuse and violence against and torture of children; promote the importance of law at both national and international levels to guarantee equal access to and justice for all.
The report eventually notes and urges the need for swift action to get back on track towards achieving just, peaceful and inclusive societies.
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This Research Topic will address the sixteenth Sustainable Development Goal from a sociological perspective.
Researchers are invited to submit papers that explore how sociological theory can be an effective tool for understanding the capacity of institutions at all levels to foster inclusive, participatory decision-making; eradicate various forms of exploitation, displacement, and alienation; and facilitate productive local, national, and international cooperation.
A related theme in this regard—particularly given the dynamic, often dizzying social fluctuations and crises humanity is presently facing—is the modern self’s right to exercise his or her autonomy and achieve authentic expression while simultaneously experiencing safe and secure relationships that are themselves embedded in broader, vibrant communities that offer meaning and purpose. With this in mind, researchers may wish to explore from a sociological perspective various complexities involved in building institutional capacities to achieve goal 16. These include institutions’:
1. becoming more accountable and transparent.
2. ensuring greater access to valid information in the public sphere.
3. enacting and upholding national legislation and international agreements that protect fundamental freedoms while also cultivating peaceful and inclusive societies.
4. releasing the potential of individual, local, national, and international actors to promote justice and active citizenship given the rise of political struggle over identity, the polarized discourse and authoritarian tendencies now pervading society, and the entrenched inequities that afflict the vast majority of humankind.
Given the setbacks in the world due the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s edition of the Research Topic will focus particularly on the challenges and complexities of promoting just, peaceful and inclusive societies in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.
• People: ending poverty and hunger and ensuring that all human beings can lead fulfilling lives in a healthy and dignified environment.
• Planet: protecting the environment while ensuring sustainable use and management of natural resources.
• Prosperity: ensuring environmentally sustainable economic growth, mutual prosperity, and decent work for all.
• Peace: building societies that are peaceful, just and inclusive, and in which human rights and gender equality are respected.
• Partnership: strengthening global solidarity to address inequalities within and between countries, by focusing on the needs of the most vulnerable.
*
This Research Topic addresses the sixteenth Sustainable Development Goal, which is to “promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies”. Progress toward this goal is measured by a number of individual targets and indicators.
In its most recent SDG progress report, the UN notes how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed discrimination and inequalities and has tested, weakened, and sometimes damaged protection systems and rights in territories and countries. The world is still far from achieving the goal of building peaceful, just and inclusive societies: millions of people are currently living in fragile and conflict-affected areas (in 2019, 79.5 million people have been displaced with force worldwide and around 437,000 people were victims of homicide), and almost 28.5 million out of school children in primary school age live in areas afflicted by war.
Moreover, violence against children was widespread even before the pandemic, with more than 1 billion children affected around the world, costing societies up to US$ 7 trillion a year. In addition, in 2019 the percentage of prisoners held in detention without being sentenced remained at 31% of the total prison population.
By 2030, this Goal aims at significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates worldwide; manage to end exploitation, trafficking, abuse and violence against and torture of children; promote the importance of law at both national and international levels to guarantee equal access to and justice for all.
The report eventually notes and urges the need for swift action to get back on track towards achieving just, peaceful and inclusive societies.
*
This Research Topic will address the sixteenth Sustainable Development Goal from a sociological perspective.
Researchers are invited to submit papers that explore how sociological theory can be an effective tool for understanding the capacity of institutions at all levels to foster inclusive, participatory decision-making; eradicate various forms of exploitation, displacement, and alienation; and facilitate productive local, national, and international cooperation.
A related theme in this regard—particularly given the dynamic, often dizzying social fluctuations and crises humanity is presently facing—is the modern self’s right to exercise his or her autonomy and achieve authentic expression while simultaneously experiencing safe and secure relationships that are themselves embedded in broader, vibrant communities that offer meaning and purpose. With this in mind, researchers may wish to explore from a sociological perspective various complexities involved in building institutional capacities to achieve goal 16. These include institutions’:
1. becoming more accountable and transparent.
2. ensuring greater access to valid information in the public sphere.
3. enacting and upholding national legislation and international agreements that protect fundamental freedoms while also cultivating peaceful and inclusive societies.
4. releasing the potential of individual, local, national, and international actors to promote justice and active citizenship given the rise of political struggle over identity, the polarized discourse and authoritarian tendencies now pervading society, and the entrenched inequities that afflict the vast majority of humankind.
Given the setbacks in the world due the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s edition of the Research Topic will focus particularly on the challenges and complexities of promoting just, peaceful and inclusive societies in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.
Keywords: SDG16, Inclusive decision-making, Eradication of exploitation, International Cooperation
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
