UN-SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, Technology and Infrastructure

Health Equity: A Foundation for Sustainable Societies Health equity is both a moral imperative and a practical necessity for sustainable human development. It refers to the absence of avoidable or remediable differences in health among groups of people, regardless of their social, economic, demographic, or geographic background1. The global community has recognized this by incorporating it into the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being, with universal health coverage as a crucial target2. ...

To truly understand the complexities of ocean acidification, it’s essential to delve into its underlying chemical mechanisms. When seawater absorbs atmospheric CO2, a gas that is being emitted at alarming rates due to human activities, it triggers a cascade of chemical reactions that ultimately increase hydrogen ion concentration and subsequently lower the water’s pH, making it more acidic.12 This intricate chemical process simultaneously reduces carbonate ion availability, a critical building block. This reduction proves particularly devastating for shell-building organisms such as oysters, clams, and mussels, which rely on these carbonate ions for survival and the development of their protective shells.34 ...