Framing sustainable development challenges: accounting for SDG-15 in the UK

Madlen Sobkowiak, Thomas Cuckston and Ian Thomson

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 2020, vol. 33, issue 7, 1671-1703

Abstract: Purpose - This research seeks to explain how a national government becomes capable of constructing an account of its biodiversity performance that is aimed at enabling formulation of policy in pursuit of SDG 15: Life on Land. Design/methodology/approach - The research examines a case study of the construction of the UK government's annual biodiversity report. The case is analysed to explain the process of framing a space in which the SDG-15 challenge of halting biodiversity loss is rendered calculable, such that the government can see and understand its own performance in relation to this challenge. Findings - The construction of UK government's annual biodiversity report relies upon data collected through non-governmental conservation efforts, statistical expertise of a small project group within the government and a governmental structure that drives ongoing evolution of the indicators as actors strive to make these useful for policy formulation. Originality/value - The analysis problematises the SDG approach to accounting for sustainable development, whereby performance indicators have been centrally agreed and universally imposed upon all signatory governments. The analysis suggests that capacity-building efforts for national governments may need to be broader than that envisaged by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Keywords: Sustainable development; Indicators; Framing; Biodiversity; SDGs; Calculability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:aaajpp:aaaj-01-2019-3810

DOI: 10.1108/AAAJ-01-2019-3810

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