National accounts—comprehensive records of a nation’s economic activity, including GDP, spending, and trade—are essential for informed policymaking. But how can this data be harnessed to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? In this webinar, the Millennium Institute demonstrated how the Sustainable Development Simulator integrates national accounts and other key indicators to model policy impacts and guide SDGs strategies.
The Sustainable Development Simulator is a systems-based model that analyzes the interconnected social, economic, and environmental dimensions of national development. It incorporates dozens of sectors, such as energy, governance, and biodiversity, and includes the Sustainable Development Goals framework. By integrating real-world data, the tool enables users to explore long-term scenarios, identify synergies, and address trade-offs between policies.
Data integration and calibration are critical to the simulator’s accuracy. It relies on data sources such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and International Energy Agency, as well as national accounts. Calibration ensures accuracy by aligning simulations with historical data. Challenges include reconciling multi-level governance data and addressing gaps in public datasets.
In this webinar, we demonstrated the application of the simulator in Brazil’s green hydrogen sector. Scenarios ranged from baseline projections to ambitious policy mixes, including tax incentives and carbon pricing. Results showed that under optimal conditions, Brazil could achieve a 100% renewable energy matrix by 2050, with co-benefits in job creation and emissions reduction. Policy optimization revealed synergies between green hydrogen development and investments in climate adaptation, infrastructure, and agriculture.
The simulator has been applied in over 40 countries, including projects on air pollution mitigation in Thailand, Indigenous livelihood improvements in Australia, and poverty reduction strategies in collaboration with Monash University.
For a deeper exploration of the Sustainable Development Simulator, schedule a demo session with our policy analysts to discuss tailored applications for your country.