Analysis of national strategies for sustainable development with regard to fundamental conceptual premise

Abstract

The problem of interaction between the economy and the environment gains special significance every year. At present, anthropogenic impact of industrial production on the environment has exceeded the sustainability limits of natural systems. Further conventional development of the economy is confronted with the limitations of the self-restoration potential of ecosystems: the non-renewable character of productive resources and the limited character of the environment to take production waste.The purpose of the paper is to identify the main directions for the implementation of national policies of sustainable development with account of the fundamental conceptual premise.The paper outlines the main principles, policies and scenarios for sustainable development and presents new components of environmental policy. The authors consider national strategies for sustainable development of the United States, China, Russia, the EU countries and pay special attention to the strategy adopted in the Netherlands. The paper determines the specific strategies features reflecting the interests of these countries’ population and the role of national economies in world economic relations.The paper explores the possibilities of the SDG Index for the identification, assessment and comparative analysis of countries’ actions to achieve the goals of sustainable development. Based on the results of the Sustainable Development Index for 2017, the authors carry out a cross-country analysis of the sustainability strategies of countries from the perspective of achieving sustainable development goals (SDG). It helps to identify the problems of using the index to track progress towards the SDG. Moreover, the article underlines the strengths and weaknesses of national sustainable development strategies of different countries, including Russia.It is shown that Russia has achieved high positions in eradicating poverty, with a significant lag behind other goals of sustainable development, especially such as the elimination of inequality, the provision of a healthy lifestyle, access to justice and the creation of effective institutions. Finally, the paper indicates the main directions of sustainable development in Russia.