UN Global Compact Bulletin (April 2019)

Sustainable business is good business — Creating financial tipping points for the SDGs   Almost four years into the 2030 Agenda, it is clear that our actions are not transformational enough, nor at the scale and pace needed to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Estimates project that it will require roughly US $5 to 7 trillion of annual investments to make this happen. This leaves us with a financing gap of between $2.5 and 3 trillion annually, and for each year we fail to close the gap, the price tag grows.

To put these numbers in perspective: last year, global GDP totaled $75 trillion. This means that aligning just three per cent of the world’s economic output with the SDGs would cover the estimated shortfall. 

And if we could activate just one per cent of available wealth assets behind the SDGs, we would be able to close the gap. Discover three things all businesses can do today to help create financial tipping points for the SDGs »

      NEWS & UPDATES   New CEO alliance to finance the SDGs announced by UN Secretary-General   The Global Investors for Sustainable Development alliance was announced by UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the 2019 SDG Investment Fair on 15 April in New York. Comprised of CEOs of large companies around the world, the alliance is aimed at harnessing private sector insights on sustainable development. The inaugural meeting of the Global Investors for Sustainable Development alliance will take place on the sidelines of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly in September 2019. Learn more »   Stock exchanges can be the bridge to achieving the 2030 Agenda   The 2030 Agenda lays out a path to end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice and protect our planet — but it needs financial investments to succeed. To address these challenges, the UN Global Compact joins its partners in calling for stock exchanges to help close the financing gap for the SDGs. Exchanges play a unique role in improving transparency in their local markets — including both debt and equity — as well as in educating local stakeholders and creating SDG-focused financial products. “Stock exchanges can be the bridge for the SDGs. We need to work together to make this bridge function well for the SDGs,” said James Zhan, Director of Investment and Enterprise at the UNCTAD at a roundtable organized as part of the 2019 Investment Fair. Read more »   Partnerships are about more than cooperation — they reflect a building of shared values   The fastest path to achieving the world we want by 2030 is through mobilizing innovative partnerships for the SDGs. At the 2019 ECOSOC Partnership Forum, the UN Global Compact calls for transformational partnerships with scalable impact. “We need to move from short-term, small-scale partnership projects to long-term, transformational, multi-stakeholder partnerships with the potential for scalable impact. At this pivotal moment in UN development system reform, taking partnerships to the next level has never been more important,” says Lise Kingo. Let’s foster transformational partnerships that make the most of our collective expertise, technology and resources »   Principles-based business key to China’s Belt and Road Initiative    Over 40 chief executives gathered in Beijing, China for a CEO Roundtable to discuss ways to partner and advance shared objectives for sustainable development. Xiao Yaqing, Chairman of State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC), expressed his commitment to mobilizing Chinese companies to fulfill their social responsibilities, protect the environment, promote local employment and work harmoniously with both local communities and international partners. The Roundtable signalled a shift in responsible business in the region, with CEOs underlining the importance of combining the pursuit of principles with the pursuit of profit, and how the two can go hand in hand. Read more »   View All News »       ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE   A successful sustainable development agenda requires partnerships   Inclusive partnerships between Governments, the private sector, civil society and academia need to be built upon a shared vision that centres people and planet. Inclusive multi-stakeholder partnerships are needed at both the global and local levels. See how you can build partnerships and multiply your impact »   Declare your commitment to stewardship by signing our CEO Water Mandate   Climate change will have significant impact on water resources including more floods and droughts, poor water quality and increased variability in water access. The first step businesses can take to address this problem is to sign our CEO Water Mandate — an important public commitment to advance water stewardship. Sign today »   Find out how your company can champion the rights of workers   To prevent human rights violations across the supply chain, businesses must take a holistic approach to advancing decent work and go beyond simply complying with basic labour laws. Learn how your company can tackle forced labour, modern slavery and child labour »   More Actions You Can Take »      WANTED: YOUNG SDG PIONEERS!   Seventeen Global Compact Local Networks are conducting a nationwide search to find the next generation of SDG Pioneers. Are you a young professional aged 35 and under who is making Global Goals local business? Click here to share your sustainability story with us today!   Help us spread the word! Click here to share the promotional video on Twitter »       OUR FEATURED RESOURCES

• Transforming Partnerships for the SDGs
• Investing in Youth Entrepreneurship and Employment
• Decent Work in Global Supply Chains — A Baseline Report

View All Resources »    

LEARN WITH THE UN GLOBAL COMPACT ACADEMY

Exclusively available to UN Global Compact Participants, the Academy helps corporate sustainability professionals advance their knowledge and capabilities through sessions taught by world-class experts on the most pressing sustainability challenges businesses face today »

• 24 April | 9:00 a.m. ET
  Addressing the gender pay gap »
• 7 May | 9:30 a.m. ET
  Setting science-based targets to align with 1.5°C pathways »
• 22 May | 9:00 a.m. ET
  Navigating partnership opportunities with the UN »
• 11 June | 10:00 a.m. ET
  Learning from peers: How to report on the SDGs »

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UPCOMING EVENTS

• 24 JUN: London | Making Global Goals Local Business – UK
  A high-level conference featuring global corporate sustainability leaders, Making Global Goals Local Business — UK will raise awareness of the Global Goals in the United Kingdom, including around its voluntary national review (VNR), and spur practical business actions and partnerships in support of sustainable development in the UK »
   
• 21–25 OCT: Turin | International Labour Standards and Corporate Social Responsibility
  Participants will deepen their knowledge of International Labour Standards, corporate social responsibility and human rights due diligence with the guidance of international development experts»

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ABOUT THE UNITED NATIONS GLOBAL COMPACT

As a special initiative of the UN Secretary-General, the United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action in support of UN goals.