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The World Bank and International Monetary Fund reported that the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires an escalation of development finance. The report Scaling Finance for the Sustainable Development Goals highlighted the urgency of the efforts to realize SDGs in encouraging financial innovation to move quickly. Even if the role of finance in achieving SDGs is unquestionable, few scientific studies have addressed these issues. We tried to fill the existing research gap. In this study, we examined the link between sustainable finance and SDGs based on European Union countries belonging to the OECD. We present a new and the original research approach. We assumed that the sustainable finance model plays a fundamental role in implementing SDGs (all SDGs were analysed except for SDG 6 and SDG14, due to lack of statistics were not analysed) and ensuring that social and environmental sustainability are reflected in SDGs. The results of this study show that the more sustainable the finance model, the better the achievement of SDGs in the group of analysed countries. We found a strong link between sustainable finance model and social sustainability (SDG1, 3, 4, 5, 10, 16); environmental sustainability (SDG11, 12, 13, 15) and economic sustainability (SDG8, 9, 17). First published online 3 December 2020

The United Nations Member States adopted the “Agenda 2030” which contains 17 sustainable development goals (SDG) that involve a certain number of targets and indicators. Although the indicators are helpful in defining the position of the current country relative to the goals’ achievement, it is very complex to determine its position relative to other countries, because this requires an extensive analysis. Therefore, in this paper, the application of the multiple-criteria decision-making approach (MCDM) in defining the position of the EU (Europe Union) countries relative to the SDGs is proposed. The MCDM model is based on the Combined Compromise Solution (CoCoSo) and the Shannon Entropy methods. The final results highlight Sweden as the country that best implemented the set SD goals and has the best outputs relative to them, while Romania is in last place. The main reason for these kinds of results could be that the countries on the bottom of the list are relatively new EU members and have not been made to properly implement SDGs yet. The conclusion is that the obtained results are fully objective and rational, and that the applied model is applicable for performing this kind of analysis.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) have set the 2030 agenda to transform our world by tackling multiple challenges humankind is facing to ensure well‐being, economic prosperity, and environmental protection. In contrast to conventional development agendas focusing on a restricted set of dimensions, the SDGs provide a holistic and multidimensional view on development. Hence, interactions among the SDGs may cause diverging results. To analyze the SDG interactions we systematize the identification of synergies and trade‐offs using official SDG indicator data for 227 countries. A significant positive correlation between a pair of SDG indicators is classified as a synergy while a significant negative correlation is classified as a trade‐off. We rank synergies and trade‐offs between SDGs pairs on global and country scales in order to identify the most frequent SDG interactions. For a given SDG, positive correlations between indicator pairs were found to outweigh the negative ones in most countries. Among SDGs the positive and negative correlations between indicator pairs allowed for the identification of particular global patterns. SDG 1 (No poverty) has synergetic relationship with most of the other goals, whereas SDG 12 (Responsible consumption and production) is the goal most commonly associated with trade‐offs. The attainment of the SDG agenda will greatly depend on whether the identified synergies among the goals can be leveraged. In addition, the highlighted trade‐offs, which constitute obstacles in achieving the SDGs, need to be negotiated and made structurally nonobstructive by deeper changes in the current strategies. Key Points Synergies, defined by positive correlations between indicator pairs, outweigh trade‐offs (negative correlations) for most sustainable development goals (SDGs) and countries SDG 1 depicts synergies with most goals while SDG 12 shows trade‐offs; SDG 3 has synergies with other SDGs in most countries and populations For attaining the SDGs, the synergies can be leveraged and the trade‐offs need to be overcome by deeper changes in the current strategies

Neoantigens, which are derived from tumour-specific protein-coding mutations, are exempt from central tolerance, can generate robust immune responses 1 , 2 and can function as bona fide antigens that facilitate tumour rejection 3 . Here we demonstrate that a strategy that uses multi-epitope, personalized neoantigen vaccination, which has previously been tested in patients with high-risk melanoma 4 – 6 , is feasible for tumours such as glioblastoma, which typically have a relatively low mutation load 1 , 7 and an immunologically ‘cold’ tumour microenvironment 8 . We used personalized neoantigen-targeting vaccines to immunize patients newly diagnosed with glioblastoma following surgical resection and conventional radiotherapy in a phase I/Ib study. Patients who did not receive dexamethasone—a highly potent corticosteroid that is frequently prescribed to treat cerebral oedema in patients with glioblastoma—generated circulating polyfunctional neoantigen-specific CD4 + and CD8 + T cell responses that were enriched in a memory phenotype and showed an increase in the number of tumour-infiltrating T cells. Using single-cell T cell receptor analysis, we provide evidence that neoantigen-specific T cells from the peripheral blood can migrate into an intracranial glioblastoma tumour. Neoantigen-targeting vaccines thus have the potential to favourably alter the immune milieu of glioblastoma. Neoantigen-targeting vaccines are a feasible therapy for tumours with a low mutation burden and immunologically ‘cold’ tumour microenvironment, as neoantigen-specific T cells from the peripheral blood migrate into intracranial glioblastoma, thereby altering the immune milieu of the glioblastoma.

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 has taken a centre stage in the development of its healthcare sector through privatization adopting Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). The objective of this study is to provide an overview of healthcare transformation in Saudi Arabia since the launch of the ambitious Vision 2030, identifying issues those need to be addressed and steps taken towards provision of health systems transformation. Literature review was based on extensive review of published and unpublished articles, where different search engines and databases searched using the key words: ‘Saudi Healthcare’, ‘Healthcare transformation’, ‘Saudi vision: 2030’, ‘Public-Private Partnerships’ and ‘Privatization’, in addition to secondary data as published in government reports, policy, government strategy documents and pertinent press releases. The future of the healthcare like many other developing economies continues to weigh policies for universal coverage while containing costs and the national transformation programme driven by social and economic factors has implemented strategic steps to develop its private healthcare system that includes: establishing health clusters, National Centre for Privatization & PPP – an official enabler for privatization of all government sectors and recently approved Private Sector Participation (PSP) Law involves several legislative enablers designed to enhance investor confidence in the privatization process. Although this study demonstrates systemic legislative progress to facilitate transformation process of healthcare sector, also endorses caution and research in identifying barriers to the implementation of PPPs, Saudi workforce development, implementing effective revenue cycle management function for healthcare reimbursement and ensuring vulnerable population access to good quality and tertiary healthcare. As healthcare of Saudi Arabia embarks on the transformation journey facing daunting challenges, but it appears that the government has laid out a roadmap with the legislative framework; however it is important that there is ongoing monitoring with adjustments as this complex and multifaceted process proceeds.

The concept of sustainable development integrates activities in the economic, environmental and social areas. Energy policy, which is very closely linked to climate protection, is of key importance for achieving the goals of the concept in question. All these elements are connected by the European Green Deal strategy and Agenda 2030. Their implementation requires the evaluation of previous actions undertaken within the framework of sustainable development and the diagnosis of the current state. Therefore, this article presents the results of such research in relation to the key industry connected with this process, which is the energy sector. The research methodology was based on the analysis of 14 indicators that characterize four basic areas (dimensions) related to energy and climate sustainability. These indicators concern energy and climate as well as social and economic issues. This approach makes it possible to comprehensively assess the actions taken so far in the implementation of sustainable economic development in the energy and climate area in the European Union (EU) countries. The entropy-complex-proportional-assessment (COPRAS) methodologies, which belong to the group of multiple criteria decision-making methods, were used for this study. The conducted research allowed for the assessment of the changes in the EU countries in terms of energy and climate sustainability between 2009–2018. In addition, the effects of the introduced changes in individual years and in relation to the studied areas (dimensions) were also evaluated. Based on the results, considering the adopted criteria, the EU countries were divided into groups similar to the level of energy and climate sustainability. The results constitute a valuable set of data, which allows for a wide and in-depth multicriteria analysis. This allows for a very objective and broad assessment of the effects of sustainable development policies in the EU countries and the current state in the context of the European Green Deal strategy and Agenda 2030.

Attending both the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014) and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, this review is presented, bearing in mind that green chemistry is essential to contribute to sustainability. This work has compiled all the information relating to green chemistry metrics, so that stakeholders can select an appropriate model, under the Green Chemistry Protocol, to evaluate how much green is a process. The review was organized considering the following convenient sections: the mass valuation, the recognition of the human health and environmental impact, metrics using computational programs (software and spreadsheets), and finally global metrics. This review was developed by consulting the principal databases, since the appearance of the first green chemistry textbook in 1998. A massive number of references were attained involving the keywords proposed below, with six languages observed, highlighted by the English language. It is important to emphasize that the 12 Principles of Green Chemistry are conceptual and offer little quantitative information. In addition, almost all the reported metric green propositions do not consider the 12 principles and few papers offer how to obtain an appropriate evaluation about the greenness of a research. In this sense, it is convenient to note that only in the Spanish literature are there two metrics that consider all the principles. Finally, to our knowledge, and after a deep search in the literature, it is the first review that covers the different features of green chemistry: mass, environment/human health. and in some cases, the use of computational programs.

Mucosally active subunit vaccines are an unmet clinical need due to lack of licensed immunostimulants suitable for vaccine antigens. Here, we show that intranasal administration of liposomes incorporating: the Streptococcus pyogenes peptide antigen, J8; diphtheria toxoid as a source of T cell help; and the immunostimulatory glycolipid, 3D(6-acyl) PHAD (PHAD), is able to induce long-lived humoral and cellular immunity. Mice genetically deficient in either mucosal antibodies or total antibodies are protected against S. pyogenes respiratory tract infection. Utilizing IL-17-deficient mice or depleting cellular subsets using antibodies, shows that the cellular responses encompassing, CD4 + T cells, IL-17, macrophages and neutrophils have important functions in vaccine-mediated mucosal immunity. Overall, these data demonstrate the utility of a mucosal vaccine platform to deliver multi-pronged protective responses against a highly virulent pathogen. Vaccines that specifically induce immunity against bacterial pathogens are required. Here the authors produce and characterize an intranasal liposomal vaccine against a peptide antigen from Streptococcus pyogenes and show that it induces a strong mucosal IgA response lasting for over one year, and that protection is dependent on cellular immunity mediated through IL-17, macrophages and neutrophils.

Among the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals adopted in the so-called Agenda 2030, Goal 5 is defined as achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls, and the objective labelled 5.2 is about the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking, sexual exploitation and other forms of exploitation. The way gender equality is framed in Agenda 2030 in the context of countering violence is unsatisfactory. It relies on outdated perceptions of sexuality, fails to recognize new problems related to the fluidity of gender identity and may indirectly lead to ignoring the problem of violence against people of a gender other than women.