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With less than 6 years left to achieve the global sustainable development goals (SDGs) by 2030, there is a growing urgency to increase the effectiveness of policy actions by targeting multiple SDGs. Mathematical modeling tools facilitate sustainability assessment in support of integrated policymaking. This study examines the interlinkages between the SDGs with commonly used and broadly applicable energy system models (ESMs) using the 248 indicators defined by the United Nations. The SDGs are classified under the environment (SDGs 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15), economy (SDGs 8, 9, 10, 11, 17), and society (SDGs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 16) domains governing the sustainability framework. The results ascertain that current ESMs are conceived to prioritize energy-related environmental indicators related to SDG7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG13 (Climate Action) with limited focus on non-energy indicators of the environmental domain, along with little to no coverage of SDGs-indicators allocated within the economic and social domains, respectively. The findings call for expanding the frontiers of ESMs to incorporate emerging systemic interdependencies that extend beyond the traditional "energy-environmental" nexus considering the multi-dimensional facets of sustainable development. For this purpose, a conceptual integrated framework was developed underscoring procedural protocols and technical directives to advance the ESMs-SDGs modeling paradigm through the application of methodological improvement opportunities. Theoretical and practical implications driven by policy and managerial perspectives were also discussed. In closure, this study can inform stakeholders about the gaps (sustainability issues and corresponding targets-indicators) that are imperative to address in modeling the SDGs and how to leverage existing ESMs into integrating a broader range of SDGs beyond traditional considerations. The improved outcomes are expected to facilitate integrated sustainable policy planning and formulation in pursuit of operationalizing the SDGs for the timely attainment of the 2030 agenda. [Display omitted] • Shortlisted ten commonly used and broadly applicable energy system models (ESMs). • Systematic interlinkages mapping among ESMs and SDGs using 248 indicators. • Ranked SDGs-indicators coverage within ESMs using a customized scoring system. • ESMs focus on energy-environmental indicators followed by economic and then social. • Proposed conceptual integrated framework for advancing ESMs-SDGs modeling paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paris Agreement, signed in 2015 by 195 countries around the world as a measure to stop and reverse the consequences of global warming and promote Sustainable Development (SD), sets out strategies for reducing greenhouse gases and the Agenda 2030, which contains the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The participating countries of these agreements are demanded to develop public policies that incorporate the signed commitments. Regarding this issue, a topic of great importance is solid waste management. To decrease the generation of waste through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse become fundamental. Landfill Mining (LM) is presented as a strategic tool that, if established properly within waste management public policies, it can contribute to SD and mitigation of climate change. This article reviews more than a hundred projects carried out in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, which were cataloged according to the objectives they attended. Economic, social and environmental benefits and their relations with the compliance of SDGs are discussed. • From 112 projects worldwide, none were from Latin America, Africa and Australia. • Most projects were initiated by the public sector. • Landfill mining is considered as a strategic tool to accomplish 11 of the 17 SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While climate change mitigation agenda and energy governance are the central concerns of climatologists and energy-environmental scientists, the mainstream literature seems silent on whether a decentralized governance structure is desirable for complex economic systems and governmental intervention approaches to realize sustainable environments. To frame this critical research gap, we investigate the contribution of fiscal decentralization in moderating the influence of economic complexity and government intervention on energy and carbon efficiency in the presence of real GDP per capita. We employ a panel method of moments quantile regression (MQR) on data from selected seven fiscally decentralized OECD countries over the 1995–2018 period. The empirical results uncovered that economic complexity causes a drop in energy efficiency (at 1, 5, and 10% significance levels), with a more magnified effect in countries with low environmental sustainability levels. Conversely, our findings exerted that government intervention discourages energy and carbon intensity (at diversified significance levels as per probability scores of 0.01, 0.05, and 0.10), with heterogeneous degrees of impact across diversified model specifications. Regarding direct influence, our outcomes exhibited that expenditure and revenue decentralization aid in energy and carbon efficiency. Concerning moderation effects, expenditure and revenue decentralization successfully rejuvenate the environmental sustainability effects of economic complexity and government intervention (at 1 and 5% significance levels). Finally, our study gauged that the EKC phenomenon exists among the sampled OECD members, indicating that economic growth in the region will be the driving force behind the region's long-term environmental sustainability. Estimation results are robust to the alternative dependent variable, carbon intensity and alternative econometric technique, ordinary least squares with Driscoll-Kraay standard errors. A fiscally decentralized paradigm is desirable from a policy standpoint for government intervention in complex economies to realize environmental sustainability goals. [Display omitted] • Employed a novel Method of Moments Panel Quantile Regression. • Economic complexity directly impedes ecological sustainability. • Government intervention directly improves ecological sustainability. • For decentralized governance, economic complexity achieves ecological sustainability. • Fiscal decentralization negatively moderates the government intervention-environment link. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were introduced to the world in 2015 to provide a roadmap for development in domains, such as poverty reduction, health, education, clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, and climate action. Among the domains that must be worked on to reach the SDGs, waste management in the present day Built Environment (BE) is a domain that has been found to be significantly involved in achieving the SDGs and ensuring a sustainable future. Addressing the significance of this observation, the review aims to provide an overview of the current environmental and social factors related to waste management in the BE, identifies how waste management is important in achieving each SDG, and discusses key challenges and opportunities regarding the waste sector along with innovative approaches to waste management. Furthermore, the review presents cooperative game theory as a tool for providing models for the better identification of gaps in the compliance of waste laws and potential predictions of the future behaviour of the generators and handlers of waste to make better policies regarding waste management in the BE by considering SDGs as a guiding tool. • Waste management in the built environment (BE) is significant for achieving SDGs. • Nexus established between SDG and waste management in the BE. • Innovative approaches to waste management are highlighted. • Waste law compliance using cooperative game theory can be predicted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the plight for sustainable development and to support net zero ambitions for climate change mitigation, a broad range of aeration strategies have been developed with the hope of improving efficiency to minimize environmental and economic costs associated with the wastewater treatment processes. However, a balance is levied between reducing oxygen availability and hindering aerobic processes thus compromising performance. In the present work, we evaluate and compare the sustainability of a range of investigated strategies including continuous aeration (CA) at different dissolved oxygen (DO) setpoints (0.5 mg/L, 2.5 mg/L, 4.5 mg/L) and intermittent aeration (IA) at different oxic-anoxic portions (2.5 h on/0.5 h off, 2.0 h on/1.0 h off, 1.5 h on/1.0 h off). To achieve this, an eco-efficiency assessment is performed based on the results of previous life cycle impact and costing analyses for each strategy, while also incorporating a third factor to account for their respective treatment performance. The results demonstrate a clear pattern of increased sustainability for the IA strategies (0.54–0.56 Pt/m3), compared to the CA strategies (0.76–0.77 Pt/m3). While only negligible difference was observed within each aeration type, the trade-off between environmental and economic efficiency and treatment performance was distinct in CA strategies. At the individual pollutant level, IA strategies demonstrated decreasing sustainability for total phosphorous (TP) removal as the anoxic cycle portion increased, while CA at 0.5 mg/L was shown to be the most sustainable strategy for the removal of this pollutant (0.61 Pt/m3). Further work is suggested to incorporate the relative N 2 O emissions generated by each strategy and to investigate other strategies based on automated control. [Display omitted] • The sustainability of 6 aeration strategies in wastewater treatment is evaluated. • Intermittent aeration is more sustainable than continuous. • Increasing performance compromises eco-efficiency in continuous aeration strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been argued recently that green growth is the only economic development pathway to secure a sustainable future. The Government of Jordan has launched a National Green Growth Plan aiming to facilitate the transition towards green growth in six priority sectors; amongst those is the solid waste management sector. Jordan Vision 2025 has set a 33% reduction target in the solid waste amounts disposed in landfills or dumpsites by 2025. This study examines the development of the municipal solid waste management sector in Jordan from sustainability standpoint and presents potential scenarios to attain Jordan Vision 2025 target and gradually place this sector on a green growth path. The Sustainability Window analysis tool was used to assess the sustainability of this sector over the 2010–2015 period. This tool identifies whether the economic growth maintains the social and environmental wellbeing using strong and weak environmental, social inclusion, and economic indicators. Three scenarios to address Jordan Vision 2025 target were proposed and compared using the Sustainability Window tool: Mechanical biological treatment-anaerobic digestion, mechanical biological treatment-composting, and incineration. It was concluded from the sustainability window analysis of the 2010–2015 data that the total number of jobs in the municipal solid waste management sector is a weak social inclusion indicator compared to the stronger one "jobs per 10,000 tonnes". Likewise, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per tonne is a weak environmental indicator unlike the stronger "net GHG emissions". It was also inferred from the Sustainability Window analysis that the 2010–2015 Jordanian municipal solid waste sector growth did not fulfill all sustainability criteria. The proposed future scenarios were compared and it was determined that the mechanical biological treatment alternatives fulfill all sustainability criteria regardless of the indicators' strength, whereas the incineration scenario only satisfies the sustainability criteria using weak environmental indicators. Nonetheless, mechanical biological treatment-composting is the most attractive scenario from an economic perspective owing to the lower GHG mitigation cost of $18.3 per tCO 2 -eq compared to $35.5/tCO 2 -eq for the mechanical biological treatment-anaerobic digestion and $161.7/tCO 2 -eq for incineration. • The sustainability of the solid waste management sector in Jordan was assessed using the Sustainability Window tool. • The current growth scheme of the Jordanian solid waste management sector is not sustainable. • Mechanical biological treatment plants are sustainable solid waste management alternatives. • The least expensive mitigation measure is the mechanical biological treatment-composting with a cost of $18.3 per tCO 2 -eq. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]