PONE-D-24-14863What do the Sustainable Development Goals reveal, and are they sufficient for sustainable development?PLOS ONE

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PLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Partly

Reviewer #3: Partly

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: No

Reviewer #3: Yes

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3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

Reviewer #3: Yes

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4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

Reviewer #3: Yes

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5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: This paper deals with a very interesting topic.

From my point of view, the paper has important merits, namely:

- the introduction provides, in overall terms, a good motivation for the remaining of the study

- the same applies to literature review, which covers the critical aspects needed as background for the empirical exercise conducted in the empirical section.

-the method is adequate and allows to obtain useful results

Regarding some minor comments, I would like to emphasize the following two aspects:

- perhaps the research questions advanced in the first section could with advantage be relocated to the methodological section

- some improvement in the last section could also be useful, namely providing more critical orientations for future research as well as for practical purposes.

Reviewer #2: 1. The indicators selected in the article are mainly related to economy and development, so it is not surprising to draw relevant conclusions;

2. There have been many empirical studies on Kuznets curve and environmental Kuznets curve in disciplines such as economics, this article only verifies the relevant conclusions;

3.SDGs have been proposed for nearly a decade, so it is certain to have some lag.

In summary, the article lacks significant innovation and is not recommended for adoption.

Reviewer #3: 1. Objectives and Research Questions:

The objectives of the paper are not fully justified and supported by the results. In the discussion section, objectives should connect the findings and discuss their contributions to addressing the research questions.

Clearly state the objectives at the outset and ensure they align with the research questions and methodology. Explain how each objective was intended to contribute to the overall aim of the study.

In the discussion section, explicitly connect each finding to the stated objectives. Discuss how the results contribute to answering the research questions and whether any unexpected findings warrant further investigation or reinterpretation of the objectives.

Identify any gaps or limitations in achieving the objectives based on the findings and propose future research directions to address these gaps.

2. Methodology:

Ambiguity in the selection of SDGs and their indicators, exclusion of SDG 14, and the limited number of indicators used.

Provide a rationale for why specific SDGs and indicators were chosen over others. Consider the relevance to the research questions, data availability, and the ability to provide a comprehensive analysis.

Acknowledge the limitation of using a subset of indicators and justify how these selected indicators are representative of the broader dataset. Discuss the potential implications of excluding certain indicators.

Consider categorizing countries based on multiple criteria, including ecological footprint (EFP) and Happy Planet Index (HPI), in addition to Gross Domestic Product per capita (GDPPC) and HDI. Provide a rationale for the chosen criteria and discuss how these categories align with the research objectives.

3. Results and Discussion:

Confusions between suggested dimensions based on HCPC-selected indicators and the trade-off between socioeconomic and environmental goals. Figures are missing in paper

Clarify how the selected dimensions align with the HCPC-selected indicators and why they are relevant to the research objectives. Discuss any trade-offs identified in the results and how they relate to achieving sustainable development goals.

Address the interlinkages between economic, social, and environmental sustainability beyond CO2 emissions, EFP, GDPPC, and HDI. Consider integrating additional indicators or dimensions to provide a more comprehensive analysis.

Discuss GDPPC as a measure of economic growth and HDI as a measure of human development and well-being. Justify their relevance in assessing sustainable development outcomes and discuss any limitations in their application.

By addressing these points in your paper, you can enhance the clarity, justification, and robustness of your research methodology, results interpretation, and discussion of findings. This approach will ensure that your paper effectively addresses the complexities of sustainability and provides valuable insights into the interplay between economic, social, and environmental factors.

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: No

Reviewer #3: No

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What do the Sustainable Development Goals reveal, and are they sufficient for sustainable development?

PONE-D-24-14863R1

Dear  Authors, 

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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Kind regards,

Abid Rashid Gill

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. If the authors have adequately addressed your comments raised in a previous round of review and you feel that this manuscript is now acceptable for publication, you may indicate that here to bypass the “Comments to the Author” section, enter your conflict of interest statement in the “Confidential to Editor” section, and submit your "Accept" recommendation.

Reviewer #3: All comments have been addressed

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2. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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3. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #3: Yes

**********

4. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #3: Yes

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6. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #3: (No Response)

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7. PLOS authors have the option to publish the peer review history of their article (what does this mean?). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy.

Reviewer #3: No

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