Mapping for a Sustainable World

The United Nations and the International Cartographic Association have a long-standing professional partnership in building awareness of how maps can be used for decision-making and raising awareness on global agendas. This publication was released on 24 January 2021, to celebrate the International Day of Education and to contribute to free and accessible education towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The publication shares best practices, conventions, and presents explanations for how different mapping techniques reveal spatio-temporal patterns - such as global population growth, socioeconomic disparities, and climate change - can be used to build understanding of the challenges and achievements towards the Sustainable Development Goals. By integrating geospatial and statistical data of the Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Indicator Database, cartography can support decision-making and promote public awareness on the SDGs. The publication introduces the SDGs and their relation to data, describes foundational design decisions in cartography, introduces common map types and diagrams for representing the SDG indicators. The final section discusses how maps can be used to improve communications, storytelling and websites.