NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Monday, October 19, 2015

Now that the Sustainable Development Goals have been signed and sealed, it is time for the private sector to deliver. For many businesses it is a difficult task, in large part because the objectives may seem abstract. Supporting a goal to end poverty in all its forms everywhere or to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls can come off more as moral aspirations than measurable deliverables.  

Fortunately, a host of resources exist to help businesses deal with this issue. Civil society and the private sector have collaborated on various fronts to create practical tools and guidelines that assist businesses in sorting out how to put the SDGs into action.

While they vary in their approach, they all aim to guide an organization through the process of assessing its priorities; identifying which SDGs match its objectives; aligning its core strategy to those SDGs; and providing concrete examples of businesses who are moving along in the process.

Here are a few of the resources that are available to businesses:

SDG Compass

Who’s behind it: A collaboration between the United Nations Global Compact, international sustainability consultancy GRI and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.  

What it involves: The SDG Compass provides guidance for companies on how they can align their strategies as well as measure and manage their contribution to achieving the SDGs.