Sustainable Development
The theory of sustainable development was defined in 1987 as development that meets the demands of the present without negotiating the ability of future generations to fit their own demands.
There are four sustainable development dimensions– society, culture, environment, and economy. Sustainability is a model for thinking about the prospect in which environmental, societal and economic factors are balanced to improve quality of life.
Sustainability is usually thought of as a long-term goal, while sustainable development leads to many processes and ways to achieve it.The SDGs identify where we have to create a sustainable world and outline new opportunities for companies worldwide.
Based on universal principles, responsible business and investment will be critical for the Sustainable Development Goals to achieve revolutionary change. Companies will benefit from a successful implementation since it will improve the enabling environment for conducting business and expanding markets around the world.
Below are connections to key UN Global Compact projects and resources and those of other like-minded organizations in some instances – to direct business and other stakeholders to action-oriented platforms and tools that assist Sustainable development goals implementation.
It’s worth noting that a single effort or resource may be relevant to many Sustainable development goals, illustrating the cross-cutting nature of today’s difficulties and difficulties. A specific initiative or resource has been associated with a primary and chosen number of Sustainable development goals to simplify the table (s). Additional links to other relevant sites will be added in the future to this table, which is intended to be a growing resource—an overview of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Sustainable development goals
UN SDGs, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, also recognized as the Global Goals, raised by the United Nations in 2015 to save the planet, end poverty, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace.
The Division for Sustainable Development Goals (Un SDG) in the United Nations supports the SDGs and their associated thematic issues, including water, oceans, climate, transport, science and technology, energy, urbanization, and the Global Sustainable Development Report.
Though the goals are vast and interdependent, the SDGs were established to be more “actionable” by an UN SDGs Resolution adopted by the General Assembly two years later. The SDGs identify where we have to create a sustainable world and outline new opportunities for companies worldwide.
Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
Understanding the impact a firm has on this problematic issue is one of the most critical steps a firm can take to address poverty. The Poverty Footprint: A People-Centered Approach to Assessing Business Impacts on Sustainable Development is a tool that helps businesses and civil society partners analyze the effects of corporations on poverty on multiple levels. The Poverty Footprint gives a thorough overview of the elements that drive poverty as a tool for implementing the Sustainable development goals, focusing on stakeholder engagement and collaborations between firms and civil society as a method of building pro-poor business strategies.
Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
1. Aim for Food Security, Health and Nutrition
Businesses should support food and agriculture systems that maximize production while minimizing waste, ensuring that everyone has enough to eat and stay healthy.
Be Environmentally Responsible
Agriculture, livestock, fisheries, and forests should be appropriately managed by businesses to support the sustainable intensification of food systems to satisfy global requirements. They must safeguard and improve the environment.
Ensure Economic Viability and Share Value
From farmers to consumers, businesses should develop, deliver, and share value across the whole food and agriculture chain.
Respect Human Rights, Create Decent Work and Help Communities To Thrive
Farmers, employees, and consumers should all have their rights respected by businesses. They should work to enhance livelihoods, promote equality, and allow all.
Encourage Good Governance and Accountability
Businesses should operate lawfully and responsibly by respecting the land and natural resource rights, avoiding corruption, being transparent about their operations, and acknowledging the consequences of their actions.
Promote Access and Transfer of Knowledge, Skills and Technology
For more sustainable food and agricultural systems, businesses should increase access to information, knowledge, and skills.
Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Companies have immense potential to positively enhance the health and well-being of their workers beyond the fundamental requirement of guaranteeing occupational health and safety. Work-related non-communicable diseases like cancer, chronic respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses, and diabetes, as well as work-related mental illness and stress, all harm worker productivity. Therefore, promoting health and well-being in the workplace and adequate occupational health and safety is beneficial to employees and employers.
Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
Education improves company chances by opening up new markets and client bases. It also leads to a better-trained workforce, which boosts productivity and propels corporate expansion. Better earnings and more disposable cash for consumer spending result from a more educated workforce.
Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
Empowering women and girls contribute to increased economic growth, social development, and the establishment of more stable and just communities. Both women and children benefit from women’s economic empowerment. It is critical to the health and social development of individuals, families, communities, and countries. Furthermore, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasize women’s empowerment as a critical development goal in and of itself and the importance of gender equality in solving various global concerns.
Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
Water stewardship assists businesses in identifying and managing water-related business risks, as well as contributing to and assisting in the implementation of more sustainable management of shared freshwater resources. Stewardship also lowers operating expenses, protects the company from resulting water stress, and improves the company’s image among customers, investors, and the surrounding community.
Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
Today, 759 million people worldwide lack electricity, and approximately three times that amount rely on polluting cooking fuels. SDG7 aims to change these figures. By 2030, it aims to provide “cheap, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.”
Goal 8: Encourage long-term, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, as well as full and productive employment and decent labour for all people
Beyond legal compliance, improving workplace procedures may boost morale and job satisfaction and stimulate creativity and innovation.
More successful industrial relations can be achieved through collaborating with workers and preserving freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining.
This can help reduce the cost of social audits in value chains.
Aiding in the reduction of youth unemployment can also contribute to peace and a more stable economic climate.
Goal 9 Build resiliency in infrastructure, encourage inclusive and sustainable industrialization and promote innovation.
Business and industry alliances can have a significant impact on a company’s long-term viability. Their diverse memberships encompass a wide range of industries worldwide, and they provide in-depth knowledge of industry-specific trends. Associations provide advice on crucial issues connected to sustainable development and corporate citizenship to companies of all sizes and sectors worldwide.
Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
While governments have the primary responsibility for protecting, respecting, fulfilling, and gradually realizing human rights, corporations can and should play a role. At a bare minimum, we expect corporations to exercise due care to avoid endangering human rights and to redress any adverse human rights implications that their operations may have.