Sustainable development (SD) has become central to contemporary development discussions, marking a significant global shift toward tackling intertwined environmental, economic, and social challenges. Even with its widespread adoption and growing importance, the exact meaning of SD often remains open to interpretation. This chapter maps out the key historical moments that have fundamentally shaped our understanding of sustainable development. Using an exploratory research design and a historical research approach grounded in an interpretivist research philosophy, this chapter investigates how pivotal events have been crucial in setting the agenda for the present-day Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The analysis critically examines significant events, including the influential 1987 ‘Our Common Future’ report (Brundtland Report), the groundbreaking 1992 Rio Earth Summit (Rio 92), and its 2012 follow-up. Later global agreements, such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, further strengthened international efforts to address climate change. The SDGs, built on the successes and lessons from earlier global frameworks like the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), offer an ambitious and integrated plan to tackle diverse global challenges.