EPDF and EPUB available Open Access under CC-BY-NC licence. This book presents impactful findings from international longitudinal studies that responded to the Agenda 2030 commitment to “leave no-one behind”.It provides actionable strategies for policy makers and practitioners to strengthen the global Sustainable Development Goals framework.

Foreword: Understanding and Enhancing Human Development among Global Youth - On the Unique Value of Developmentally Oriented Longitudinal Research ~ Richard M. Lerner Introduction: Measuring Sustainable Human Development Across the Life Course ~ Prerna Banati Exploring the Potential for Gender Norm Change in Adolescent Girls: Evidence from ‘Real Choices, Real Lives’ Longitudinal, Qualitative Study Data ~ Jenny Rivett and Lilli Loveday Unequal Educational Trajectories: The Case of Ethiopia ~ Ilze Plavgo Early Life Transitions Increase the Risk for HIV Infection: Using Latent Class Growth Models to Assess the Effect of Key Life Events on HIV Incidence Among Adolescent Girls in Rural South Africa ~ Audrey Pettifor, Emily Agnew, Torsten B. Neilands, Jennifer Ahern, Stephen Tollman, Kathleen Kahn and Sheri A. Lippman Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals: Evidence from the Longitudinal Parenting Across Cultures Project ~ Jennifer E. Lansford, W. Andrew Rothenberg, Sombat Tapanya, Liliana Maria Uribe Tirado, Saengduean Yotanyamaneewong, Liane Peña Alampay, Suha M. Al- Hassan, Dario Bacchini, Marc H. Bornstein, Lei Chang, Kirby Deater- Deckard, Laura Di Giunta, Kenneth A. Dodge, Sevtap Gurdal, Qin Liu, Qian Long, Patrick S. Malone, Paul Oburu, Concetta Pastorelli, Ann T. Skinner, Emma Sorbring and Laurence Steinberg Achieving Gender Equality: Understanding Gender Equality and Health Among Vulnerable Adolescents in the Sustainable Development Goals Era ~ Leah R. Koenig, Mengmeng Li and Robert W. Blum Capturing the Complexities of Adolescent Transitions Through a Mixed Methods Longitudinal Research Design ~ Sarah Baird, Nicola Jones, Bassam Abu Hamad, Maheen Sultan and Workneh Yadete Child Well-being Across the Life-course: What Do We Know, What Should We Know? ~ Gary Pollock, Haridhan Goswami and Aleksandra Szymczyk Mauritian Joint Child Health Project: A Multigenerational Family Study Emerging from a Prospective Birth Cohort Study: Initial Alcohol-related Outcomes in the Offspring Generation ~ Susan E. Luczak, Shameem Oomur, Kristina Jackson and Tashneem Mahoomed Conclusion: The Future of Longitudinal Research ~ Prerna Banati

It is critical that the wellbeing of society is systematically tracked by indicators that not only give an accurate picture of human life today, but also provide a window into the future for all of us. This is the first effort to curate findings from a collection of longitudinal studies operating in different countries and contexts, and working across a number of development sectors. In bringing high quality academic research to policy audiences, this book aims to guide countries in their SDG implementation efforts. The book applies life course thinking to understand and measure the SDGs, and brings powerful analytic potential of longitudinal data to policy construction and analysis.