The Shakespearean Roadmap for the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

Through an interdisciplinary lens of psychology, politics, environmentalism, economics and literary analysis, this paper explores intersections between the ethics embedded in William Shakespeare’s As You Like It (1599) and the food for thought on what is known since 2015 as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The paper scrutinizes Shakespeare’s criticism of unsustainable practices that thwart individual and collective prosperity as well as his advocacy of sustainability associated with the characters’ thoughts and behaviours. Analytical and comparative approaches are applied. The paper argues that the conducted analysis can raise the reader’s sustainable awareness and, consequently, accelerate his contribution to the implementation of the goals. The paper concludes that Shakespeare has managed to represent a roadmap for the implementation of the SDGs prior to the one proposed by the UN and that both roadmaps go beyond the fluctuating empathy gap between the wealthy and the impoverished to emphasize their partnership as pivotal for social welfare.