Last modified: 2018-02-12
Abstract
The concept of sustainability has entered the World Literature at the beginning of the 1970s. Since then, "sustainability" has become the most fundamental element in economic development strategies and processes. In the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, the concept of "sustainable development" took place in development debates and policies to be implemented.
From 1987 to the present day, many conferences, meetings, and agreements have been made on this issue for the future generations to live in a healthy environment. 17 goals for sustainability were identified in the Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Summit in 2015. While 12, 13, 14, and 15 of these goals are entirely related to the environment; goals 2, 6, and 7 are partially related to the environment regarding their objectives.
Various indices are used to evaluate whether the countries have reached these goals. One of these indices is the Environmental Performance Index, and the other is the Sustainable Development Goals Index and Dashboard. These indices, which contain many indicators, reveal the situation of the countries.
In this study, the performance of the Balkan countries according to the sustainable development goals of the environment was evaluated. According to the Sustainable Nitrogen Management Index, which envisages sustainable agriculture, all Balkan countries perform deficient performance. In SDG 14 (Life Below Water) Balkan countries have similarly low score in general.