Hope and optimism invaded the streets of midtown Manhattan when recently more than 150 world leaders gathered at the United Nations to adopt a new vision for a better word, and how to reach it, through the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
More ambitious and comprehensive than the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Sustainable Development Goals consist of a common set of development goals for all communities in every country such as ending poverty, fighting inequality, tackling climate change and building peaceful societies by 2030. They are the result of the largest consultation program of its kind ensuring that all countries and groups had their voices heard.
Contrary to the MDGs, corporations are expected to play a key role in achieving these goals, representing a unique opportunity to drive change and innovation. As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon affirmed, "Now is the time to mobilize the global business community as never before. The case is clear. Realizing the Sustainable Development Goals will improve the environment for doing business and building markets."
But can the international community really expect business to take on this role? There are good reasons to argue a positive answer to this question. Aligning their agendas with the SDGs is squarely in companies' interest:
First, the SDGs give corporations the possibility to expand their business activities. Since the SDGs channel investments towards the most pressing issues, corporations can identify new opportunities to contribute through technology and business driven solutions, facilitating a shared value creation that benefits both business and society.
Second, since the SDGs will shape the international development agenda for years to come and reflect stakeholder expectations, companies that align their own agenda with the SDGs are more likely to gain popularity among their stakeholders and improve their reputation. Companies who ignore the SDG agenda will be 'named and shamed' which will consequently tarnish their reputation and affect their economic growth.
Third, we know that healthy markets go hand in hand with healthy societies. The more efforts are spent on establishing the rule of law, stronger financial systems and non-corrupt governments in developing countries, the more business opportunities will arise in these markets, ultimately benefiting companies.
Finally, given that the SDGs provide a common language and framework, companies will be able to better report and communicate their impact and performance with their stakeholders.
In a nutshell, the SDGs do matter for business. But the SDGs are also lofty universal goals that do not in themselves provide an actionable roadmap for their implementation. Luckily, help is at hand.
As part of the annual United Nations Private Sector Forum organized by the UN Global Compact recently in New York, the SDG compass was launched to give corporations the necessary knowledge and tools to operate in a sustainable manner. As Peter Bagger, President & CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development stated "What the SDG compass is all about is, how can we make it easy for every business in the world to look at the SDGs, to align their strategies, to master and manage the things that are going to help contribute to those SDGs and to then be radically transparent about the progress we make."
According to the UN Global Compact website, the SDG Compass focuses on helping companies in 5 areas:
•Navigating the SDGs and the complex context surrounding them
•Identifying business priorities by analyzing their positive and negative, current and potential impact on the SDGs
•Aligning growth and impact agendas with the SDGs
•Integrating the SDGs into core business processes and governance
•Reporting on the fulfillment of the SDGs through common indicators and a shared set of priorities
With the SDGs' adoption, we are at the beginning of a journey. Ahead of us lies the responsibility and opportunity to change the world for the better under the sign of cooperation, compromise and solidarity. With the SDGs, the international community is recognizing the private sector as a key player in achieving sustainable development, while providing companies unprecedented opportunities to contribute meaningfully to real change.
The time could not be better for businesses to seize this opportunity.