United Nations 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction

In 2015, all United Nations (UN) member states came together and adopted Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. At its heart are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that encompass the social, economic, and environmental challenges of today.

Many Government of Canada priorities align with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs, including gender equality, diversity and inclusiveness, environmental sustainability, and economic prosperity.

All federal ministers, departments and agencies are accountable for implementing the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs within their areas of responsibility. This shared collaboration across the Government of Canada will help to ensure that Canada's commitment to the 2030 Agenda remains focused on effective implementation from now until 2030. Officials across federal departments and agencies are responsible for integrating the SDGs into their work, engaging with stakeholders and reporting on progress made on the SDGs within their purview.

To support a whole-of-Canada approach, the Government of Canada has established an SDG Unit to coordinate efforts, raise awareness, monitor and report on Canada’s implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

**Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada**
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)	Planned initiatives	Associated domestic targets or “ambitions” and/or global targets
SDG 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture	A Food Policy for Canada Launched in 2019, the vision of the Food Policy for Canada is that “all people in Canada are able to access a sufficient amount of safe, nutritious, and culturally diverse food. Canada's food system is resilient and innovative, sustains our environment and supports our economy.”	This initiative contributes to advancing: Canadian Indicator Framework ambition that Canadians have access to sufficient, affordable and nutritious food
SDG 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture	Canadian Agricultural Partnership The Canadian Agricultural Partnership is a $3 billion five-year (2018-2023), investment by federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) governments to strengthen and grow Canada's agriculture and agri-food sector. Agricultural Climate Solutions (ACS) Living Labs and ACS On-Farm Climate Action Fund The Agricultural Climate Solutions (ACS) Living Labs aims to incent and accelerate on-farm co-development, testing, monitoring, dissemination, and adoption of Beneficial Management Practices (BMP) that sequester carbon, mitigate climate change, and provide environmental co-benefits and social benefits. ACS Living Labs is a program under the Natural Climate Solutions Fund (NCSF), a horizontal initiative led by Natural Resources Canada, with Environment and Climate Change Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, which aims to develop projects that invest in natural climate solutions. The ACS On-Farm Climate Action Fund aims to accelerate the adoption of farm practices that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, sequester carbon, and achieve other environmental co-benefits. The program, also under the NCFS, focuses on supporting BMP adoption in three areas: improving nitrogen management; increasing adoption of cover cropping; and, normalizing rotational grazing.	These initiatives contribute to advancing: Canadian Indicator Framework ambition that Canada’s agriculture is sustainable; and Canadian Indicator Framework target 2.2 “By 2030, support improvement in the environmental performance of the agriculture sector by achieving a score of 71 or higher for the Index of Agri-Environmental Sustainability” Global target 2.4 “By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality” (more information can be found in the Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy Supplementary Information Table)
SDG 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all	Agricultural Clean Technology Program Recognizing that many Canadian farmers use natural gas and propane in their operations, the Agricultural Clean Technology Program provides support for the development and adoption of clean technology. One of the Program’s priority areas is green energy and energy efficiency, which will support the purchase and installation of more efficient technologies, including more efficient grain dryers, and technologies that will help farms shift from diesel to clean energy.	This program indirectly supports the following targets: Global target 7.2 “By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix” Global target 7.3 “By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency”
SDG 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all	Canadian Agricultural Partnership – business risk management programs The Canadian Agricultural Partnership is a $3 billion five-year (2018-2023), investment by federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) governments to strengthen and grow Canada's agriculture and agri-food sector. Business risk management programs will continue to help producers manage significant risks that threaten the viability of their farm and are beyond their capacity to manage.	These programs indirectly contribute to the following target: Global target 8.3 “Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services”
SDG 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation	Global Agricultural Monitoring The purpose of Group on Earth Observations Global Agricultural Monitoring Initiative (GEOGLAM) is to increase market transparency and improve food security by producing and disseminating relevant, timely, and actionable information on agricultural conditions and outlooks of production at national, regional, and global scales. It achieves this by strengthening the international community’s capacity to utilize coordinated, comprehensive, and sustained Earth observations. AAFC is involved through scientific cooperation with this international organization.	These partnerships help indirectly support the following target: Global target 9.5 “Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending”
SDG 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns	Food Waste Reduction Challenge The Food Waste Reduction Challenge will accelerate the implementation of innovative and concrete actions to reduce food waste in the food processing, grocery retail, and food service sectors. The Challenge will seek to attract new ideas, partners, and resources to invest in solving the complex problem of food waste, prompt new collaborations among non-traditional partners and problem solvers, gather new data, and build the capacity of new innovators and support their entry into the market.	This initiative contributes to advancing: Canadian Indicator Framework ambition that Canadians consume in a sustainable manner; Canadian Indicator Framework indicator 12.3.1 “Total waste diversion per capita”; Global target 12.3 “By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses”; Global target 12.5 “By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse”; and Global target 12.6 “Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle.”
SDG 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts	Agricultural Climate Solutions (ACS) Living Labs and ACS On-Farm Climate Action Fund The Agricultural Climate Solutions (ACS) Living Labs aims to incent and accelerate on-farm co-development, testing, monitoring, dissemination, and adoption of Beneficial Management Practices (BMP) that sequester carbon, mitigate climate change, and provide environmental co-benefits and social benefits. ACS Living Labs is a program under the Natural Climate Solutions Fund (NCSF), a horizontal initiative led by Natural Resources Canada, with Environment and Climate Change Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, which aims to develop projects that invest in natural climate solutions. The ACS On-Farm Climate Action Fund aims to accelerate the adoption of farm practices that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, sequester carbon, and achieve other environmental co-benefits. The program, also under the NCFS, focuses on supporting BMP adoption in three areas: improving nitrogen management; increasing adoption of cover cropping; and, normalizing rotational grazing.	This initiative contributes to advancing: Canadian Indicator Framework ambition that Canadians reduce their greenhouse gas emissions; Canadian Indicator Framework target of “By 2030, reduce Canada's total greenhouse gas emissions by 40 to 45%, relative to 2005 emission levels. By 2050, achieve economy-wide net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.”; and Global target 13.1 “Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries”
SDG 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss	Drought Watch initiative The Drought Watch website provides timely and up-to-date information on a variety of climate variables affecting Canada’s agriculture. One key component of the website’s monitoring and reporting functions is the Canadian Drought Monitor and outlooks which provide monthly assessments of drought as well as a monthly forecast of drought across Canada. The site also tracks and maps a variety of agro-climate impacts including flood, drought heat waves, frosts, and their impact on the crop and livestock sectors. The site also provides producers access to a variety of information on managing agroclimate risks.	This initiative indirectly contributes to advancing: Global target 15.3 “By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world”