IPA SDG Dashboard Initiative - IPA SDG Dashboard

Industry, innovation and infrastructure

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG9 Hub: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure

Industry, innovation, and infrastructure are integral players in the drive towards a sustainable future. SDG 9 encompasses the complexities and the interconnectedness of sustainable development as a whole. As a global publisher, Springer Nature is committed to SDG9 by publishing state-of-the-art content to help advance research and development in the field, and also by being an active voice, promoting an interdisciplinary evidence-based approach through this SDG9 hub.

Peace, justice and strong institutions

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG16 Hub: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

SDG16 promotes a world that ensures equal access to justice for all by developing transparent and inclusive institutions of global governance and protecting fundamental freedoms. Research plays a key role in supporting the development of public policy and in promoting a better way forward. For this hub, Springer Nature brings together cutting-edge research on law, politics, criminology, public policy and more, looking to a future that builds peaceful, just and strong societies and institutions.

Good Health and well-being

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG3 Hub: Good Health and Well-being

As a global publisher we are committed to playing our role in advancing progress towards achieving SDG3 by both supporting researchers and being an active voice, promoting an interdisciplinary evidenced-based approach to all targets and indicators within this goal. This research hub aims to enabling greater access to high-quality content to assist policy-makers, governments and humanitarian organisations, in making research-backed decisions to advance the international well-being agenda.

Sustainable cities and communities

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG 11 Hub: Sustainable Cities & Communities

As a champion of research that has a direct impact on societal challenges, we at Springer Nature are committed to publishing research to benefit the future of sustainable cities and communities. This hub features research and content from across our imprints, channels and disciplines related to making progress towards SDG 11.

Zero hunger

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG2 Hub: Zero Hunger

Research that can help deliver insights and solutions towards the reduction of hunger, as targeted by SDG 2, is a major publishing focus of Springer Nature’s SDG Programme, whether in biotechnology or in geography, whether in agronomy or in economics, whether in nutrition or in international law. This hub presents a selection of books, journals and magazines content that highlights our commitment to addressing SDG 2.

Reduced inequalities

The Sustainable Development Goals Programme SDG10 Hub: Reduced Inequalities

Springer Nature’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Programme aims to connect the researchers who are tackling the world’s toughest challenges with the practitioners in policy and business who desperately need those insights to achieve their goals in improving the world, by making our publishing activities more visible. To better achieve SDG 10, Springer Nature has here collected a selection of our published content from across disciplines, format and imprint related to reducing inequalities.

Affordable and clean energy

Climate Change Knowledge Cooperative

In a cross industry collaboration this new platform is a new initiative to help broaden the discovery and understanding of climate change research — and accelerate its application towards a sustainable future. Research articles have been summarized into layperson articles and available free for everyone to explore the research stories or try searching for topics such as rising sea level, carbon offset, environmental campaigning or pollution.

Climate action

PRISME (book packages bundling platform)

The French Book Chain uses a single logistics platform called Prisme where all the packages of books to be delivered to bookstores out of Paris, Belgium and in Luxembourg are gathered and sorted out. This allows bundling the flows of books to bookstores as well as returns, as therefore lowering shipping fees and contributing to a cleaner environment. It is currently used by 350 publishers/ distributors and 2500 booskellers.

Climate action

Online “The Green Book Imprint” Sustainability Conference

During this special online conference, the topic “Together for sustainability in the book and media industry” was examined from different perspectives in order to discuss existing and new approaches. The program with keynotes, panel discussions and practical sessions were curated together with the editors of Börsenblatt, MVB’s trade magazine, and aimed at everyone who wants to help the book and media industry become more sustainable.

Quality education

BookStart Baby Bag Program

The Bookstart Baby programme, run by the UK’s largest children’s reading charity BookTrust, will provide book packs to families with babies born in 2021 to support their early learning and development and encourage a positive home learning environment. Bookstart Baby packs aim to promote a love of reading in children from as young an age as possible, and every child aged 0-12 months is eligible for a free pack of books and resources.

Quality education

Indonesian SDG Book Club

On World Book day 2020, The United Nations in Indonesia launched its SDG Book Club, aiming to get Indonesian children to learn about sustainable development and to empower them through stories. The Book Club presents reading tips and a reading list with suggested reading in Indonesian for different age groups covering all of the SDGs.

Peace, justice and strong institutions

Workshop and Seminar on National Book and Reading Policies for Africa

A workshop on National Book and Reading Policies for Africa was held in Nairobi, June 2019. Both the workshop and follow-up seminar validated the African Union Continental Framework on Book and Reading Policy, intended to support quality education for national development in 42 anglophone and francophone African countries. Furthermore, the collaboration is seen as instrumental to the attainment of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, in particular SDG 4: Quality Education.

Partnerships for the goals

Technical Seminar on National Book and Reading Policies (NBRP)

This jointly organised technical seminar on National Book and Reading Policies (NBRP) in Africa was intended to support quality education through sustained and improved literacy for the benefit of African people and national development. The seminar took place in December 2019 in Kigali, Rwanda. The six participating anglophone countries were Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda and Uganda. Participants were guided through the process of developing national book and reading policies.

Partnerships for the goals

Springer Nature’s Sustainable Development Goals Programme

The Springer Nature China New Development Awards were announced in 2019. This award recognises the contribution of Chinese research to international sustainable development, which is significant as China has one of the world’s fastest growing volume of scientific and scholarly research globally. 10 Chinese authors received the award in recognition for their research into areas such as climate change, economic development, eco-development and green intelligent transportation systems.

Peace, justice and strong institutions

Parliamentary Book Club

The Parliamentary Book Club is an initiative whereby Australians get to nominate a book they think their leaders must read. Launched in 2019, it invites all parliamentarians to read the selected book, and then participate in a meeting at Parliament House to join the author in a discussion of the book’s main themes. The intention is that the books will lay the foundation for discussion around aspects of Australian life, which could inform and inspire new ways of thinking.

Peace, justice and strong institutions

Freedom to Publish Committee and the Prix Voltaire

In a democracy, the rights of authors and publishers to create and distribute their works in complete freedom is critical. The IPA’s Freedom to Publish Committee challenges violations and drives dialogue around issues related to the freedom to publish. The IPA also awards the prestigious Prix Voltaire to recognise exemplary courage in upholding the freedom to publish. Nominees have usually published controversial works amid pressure, threats, intimidation and harassment.

Life on land

Reducing the Use of Plastic in Packaging

Publishers mainly use plastic for shrink wrapping to protect books, magazines and journals during distribution and selling. However, some publishers have taken measures to reduce the use of plastic in their packaging. Springer Nature have in 2019 stopped wrapping all but the largest research books (where damage is more likely if unwrapped), reducing the number of units wrapped by 1.2 million and replaced two million plastic wallets, used for CDs, with paper alternatives.

Climate action

Responsible Sourcing of Printed Material: Guidelines for The Green Book Trade

In 2016, the Norwegian Publishers Association began to work on the topic “The green book trade.” Their goal has been to make it easier for publishers to choose their suppliers based on an internationally recognised set of criteria and guidelines. They developped a guide to the sustainable procurement of paper, an introduction on to procurement policies, a list of tools and measures to prevent the use of controversially sourced paper, and a system for rating individual books and paper quality.

Life below water

#oursea Moomin Campaign

The Baltic Sea is one of the most polluted seas in the world. To mark the 75th anniversary of the Moomins, the Moomin Characters Ltd launched the #oursea campaign. This campaign was arranged in cooperation with the John Nurminen Foundation, an organisation working to save the Baltic sea and its heritage. The goal was to raise one million euros to support the foundation’s work to save the Baltic Sea from Eutrophication.

Life below water

Authors4Oceans

Author Lauren St. John also launched the website Authors4Oceans, containing tips to how to reduce plastic waste. The authors and illustrators who are part of the initiative are passionate about the natural world and preserving it for future generations. They are committed to ridding their lives and communities of plastic and unsustainable practices wherever possible, and inspiring young (and old) readers to do the same.