Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41102180›Full record

ArticleNature communications2025

Assessing global sustainability performance, imbalance, and coordination over space and time.

Zhenci Xu, Xiuzhi Chen, Qutu Jiang, Xutong Wu, Nishan Bhattarai, John Mullen, Zhongbin B Li, Georgina G Gurney, Shuxin Li, Canbing Li and 6 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

16 authors.

Zhenci Xu *Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4123-077X
Xiuzhi Chen *State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Agricultural Water Resources, College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9371-4648
Qutu Jiang *Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8771-8557
Xutong WuState Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Disaster Risk Reduction, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6124-0436
Nishan BhattaraiDepartment of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2749-3549
John MullenDepartments of Educational Leadership, Administration, and Research and Geography, Planning, and Sustainability, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9822-0591
Zhongbin B LiSchool of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2600-0589
Georgina G GurneyCollege of Arts, Society & Education, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.
Shuxin LiCenter for Systems Integration and Sustainability, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
Canbing LiDepartment of Electrical Engineering, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China.
Tuo YinState Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Agricultural Water Resources, College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
Sumin BianCutting Edge Net for Biomedical Research and Innovation School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Jian ZhangSchool of Life Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agro-ecosystems, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.
Siqi HanState Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Agricultural Water Resources, College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
Yunkai LiState Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Agricultural Water Resources, College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China. yunkai@cau.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4226-3805
Jianguo LiuCenter for Systems Integration and Sustainability, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA. liuji@msu.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6344-0087

Funding

National Science Foundation (NSF) 2118329
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Adopted by 193 countries in 2015, the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to address urgent global challenges by 2030. However, consistent and comprehensive assessments of countries' spatiotemporal performance, and of the balance and coordination among the SDGs, remain scarce. Here, we developed three indices-the Sustainable Development Relative Performance Index (SDRPI), Sustainable Development Gini Index (SDGI), and Sustainable Development Coordination Index (SDCI)-to measure global SDG performance, imbalances, and coordination over time and across space. Results show that most countries improved their sustainable development performance from 2000 to 2020, with imbalances narrowing and low-income countries achieving faster progress than high-income ones. Several Eastern European countries recorded the largest SDRPI gains, while Sweden, Spain, and Poland exhibited the lowest SDGI scores, reflecting minimal imbalances. Low-income countries also displayed strong coordination in SDG improvements. These findings underscore the urgency of targeted governance and policies to address underperforming SDG targets and foster balanced, coordinated global sustainable development.

Identifiers

PMID41102180
PMCPMC12533228

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.