Masterclass – Business benefits of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Overview

“The SDGs provide all businesses with a new lens through which to translate the world’s needs and ambitions into business solutions. These solutions will enable companies to better manage their risks, anticipate consumer demand, build positions in growth markets, secure access to needed resources, and strengthen their supply chains, while moving the world towards a sustainable and inclusive development path.” Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Business (2017)"

The SDGs are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 quantitative and qualitative Global Goals reflect the aspirations of the people around the world. They are designed to address global economic, social, governance and environmental challenges, providing a common framework for shared action across all sectors and countries. In 2015,193 countries (including Scotland) adopted the SDGs, with the target date of 2030.

At current private sector participation levels there will be a US$2.4 trillion+ p/a funding gap. Business-as-usual will not deliver the 2030 Agenda. A step-change in private investment and business behaviour in SDGs is required. Despite the funding gap only a fraction of the worldwide invested assets of banks, multinationals, pension funds, insurers, philanthropists and foundations are aligned with the SDGs.

By embracing the SDGs financial institutions and businesses can demonstrate a commitment to upholding basic responsibilities to people and the planet…. at the same time as improving the bottom line. Businesses such as Unilever promote and exemplify the idea that if a company wants to be prosperous in the long-term, putting sustainability at the heart of its business model makes perfect sense. Furthermore global research by PwC found that 78 percent of customers are more likely to buy the goods and services of companies that had signed up to the SDGs.

This practitioner-led course will provide you with an introduction to the SDGs, how the Scottish Government is embracing them, what they mean to the financial services sector and the role your organisation can play in tapping into the economic opportunities estimated by the Business & Sustainable Development Commission to be worth at least US$12 trillion a year by 2030. It will look at the challenge in balancing the three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental and provide practical guidance on as to how your organisation can positively embrace the SDGs.

This event will help you to:

• Understand the scale and scope of the SDGs (including approach taken by Scottish Government)
• Appreciate the business opportunities presented by the SDGs
• Understand the role of finance in delivering the SDGs and what the leading financial institutions are doing (including an introduction to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and UN Principles for Responsible Banking)
• Identify what the SDGs mean to your organisation and the practical steps that can be taken to progress them

Topics Covered

1. Demystifying the SDGs
2. Mainstreaming the SDGs at the national level
3. Understanding the relevance to business
4. Implications for Financial services sector
5. Practical tools for embedding the SDGs