The future we want: Sustainability, psychology, and the global agenda for a better world

In Agenda 2030 (United Nations, 2015) a comprehensive action plan for people, planet, peace, and prosperity is articulated in terms of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The goals are clear and concise: No poverty; Zero hunger; Good health and well-being; Quality education; Gender equality; Clean water and sanitation; Affordable and clean energy; Decent work and economic growth; Industry, innovation and infrastructure; Reduced inequalities; Sustainable cities and communities; Responsible consumption and production; Climate action; Life below water; Life on land; Peace, justice and strong institutions; and Partnerships for the Goals.

The proclamation of Agenda 2030 in 2015 activated global initiatives around these 17 Global Goals to ensure intergenerational equity and long-term sustainability, peace, and prosperity for people and the planet. Over the past five years, governments, universities, and civil society have mobilised resources to align strategic investments that will support the attainment of the goals within the intended timeframe (United Nations, 2021; World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987).

What then is the role of psychology within the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? At first one might argue that SDG 3 on ‘Good health and well-being” seems to be the space where optimal psychological research and improvements of Psychology practice might take place. Upon deeper reflection however, it is clear that the utility of psychology within the sustainability agenda applies much wider than in SDG 3 only.

Psychology, quality education, and sustainability

While psychology is certainly pivotal within SDG 3, it can be potentiated to also support the realisation of multiple Global Goals. The collection of studies presented in this guest section of the Journal of Psychology in Africa illustrates how the science, discipline, and practice of Psychology can contribute to the achievement of multiple Global Goals.

In her invited paper, ‘The psychology of sustainability and sustainable development: Transdisciplinary perspectives’, Annamaria de Fabio elucidates the role of psychology in all the Sustainable Development Goals. She shows how the intentional construction of well-being and quality of life in natural, personal, social, and organisational environments can serve both supportive and preventative functions (e.g., all 17 SDGs).

In ‘Sustainable early literacy outcomes for young children of poverty: Influences of attendance, social competence, and problem behaviour’, Karen Stoiber and Maribeth Gettinger concurrently address well-being, quality education, and reduced inequalities (SDG 3, SDG 4, SDG 10). Their study shows school attendance as significantly linked to pre-schoolers’ code-related outcomes, such as letter knowledge and rhyming. They also found that children’s social competence significantly predicted three of four literacy outcomes: a code-related (rhyming) measure, a meaning-related (story and print concepts) measure, and a code/meaning-related (broad screener) measure.

In the article ‘Understanding general pedagogical knowledge influences on sustainable teacher well-being: A qualitative exploratory study’, the emphasis shifts towards teachers. Ann-Kathrin Dittrich and the section guest editor explore the ways in which teacher well-being features in teacher discussions on general pedagogical knowledge. The study acknowledges the prominence of engagement, relationships and achievements in teacher well-being.

Psychology and gender equity

The study by Maretha Visser contributes to our understanding of gender equity (SDG 5). In her article on the ‘Evaluation of a masculinity and gender equality intervention for primary school boys’ she shows how a 12-session Hero Empathy Programme can increase respect for girls, reduce violence towards girls, and increase the acceptance of a positive perspective of masculinity in young boys.

Good health and well-being, psychology, and society

The multi-dimensionality of well-being is illustrated by two contributions. The intersection between the world of work (SDG 8), quality education (SDG 4), and well-being (SDG 3) forms the basis of the study by Sumari O’Neil and Jessica Gopal who investigated ‘Workplace requirements and emotional labour of academic staff at a South African University’. They position emotional labour as an important coping strategy for university lecturers to protect their well-being. However, they also point out that excessive levels of emotional labour can be detrimental to lecturer well-being.

In a quest to expand understanding within the domains of poverty reduction (SDG 1) and well-being (SDG 3), Linda Liebenberg and Vanessa Scherman use resilience as a conceptual tool to understand the promotion of child and adolescent mental health outcomes. In their article, ‘Resilience and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Promoting child and youth resilience and related mental health outcomes’, they promote expansive community resilience as a means of achieving the SDGs, specifically as these goals relate to child and youth resilience and mental health outcomes.

In a reactive article, entitled Unsettling transdisciplinary perspectives on sustainability issues that analysed the six manuscripts submitted for the articles presented here, Maximus Sefotho re-affirms the rationale for this special section (i.e., that the tenets between sustainability and well-being in psychology need further, and ongoing, investigation).

Conclusion

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are multi-faceted, interconnected, and dynamic. They provide a framework for creating a peaceful and prosperous future world, for suggesting new ways to protect the planet, and for improving the quality of life for all its people. This volume provides glimpses into the aspirations of scientists and psychologists who are working to support sustainable development across multiple domains (e.g., SDGs) in a wide variety of contexts. The studies exalt the potential of psychology to support the goals, but most prominently, they illustrate the integral role of psychology in achieving the global goals.