SDGs is a policy brief series
Building a Better World Together: Cooperative Contributions to the SDGs is a policy brief series developed in support of the UN International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) 2025 to highlight how cooperatives drive progress across the Sustainable Development Goals. Produced by the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC) in collaboration with the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) and its regional offices, the latest briefs focus on the following four SDGs
SDG 1: No Poverty – shows how cooperatives create decent livelihoods, advance social inclusion, and enable members to access essential services such as finance, housing, health, and care. Featuring examples from Nepal and Laos in Asia-Pacific, along with countries in other regions, the brief demonstrates how cooperatives support fair market access, empower women and informal workers, and build collective resilience in the face of economic shocks, climate change, and rising inequality.
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities – explains how cooperatives address structural inequalities. From the Asia-Pacific region, it highlights the work of India’s AMUL and Sri Lanka’s SANASA Federation to demonstrate how cooperatives reduce income disparities, support transitions from informality to decent work, strengthen social protection and financial inclusion, and ensure that workers, producers, and communities have a meaningful voice in economic decision-making.
SDG 13: Climate Action – explains how cooperatives contribute to climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience-building across diverse economic sectors. With examples from Vietnam and forestry cooperatives in Japan, it shows how cooperatives support climate-resilient livelihoods, promote sustainable production and consumption, and enable communities to collectively manage natural resources while responding to climate shocks and environmental degradation.