This document discusses leveraging the UN Sustainable Development Goals for brands. It provides an introduction to the goals, including ending poverty, and outlines expectations for business engagement. Civil society organizations see opportunities for businesses to contribute through their core activities. The business case for alignment with the SDGs includes access to new markets among the 4 billion living in poverty and growth in green technologies worth over $3 trillion by 2020.

1. Aris Vrettos | @arisvrettos
Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
Leveraging the New UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Expectations and Engagement Strategies for Brands
Michael Spanos | @GlSustain
Global Sustain
Ole Lund Hansen
United Nations Global Compact
Silvia Donato
European Commission’s Directorate
General for Research and Innovation
Anna Swaithes | @annaswaithes
SABMiller

2. Leveraging
the
new
UN
Sustainable
Development
Goals:
Expecta=ons
and
Engagement
Strategies
for
Brands
Michael
Spanos
Managing
Director
michael.spanos@globalsustain.org
London,
November
2015

5. Introduc=on

12. Goal
1:
End
poverty
in
all
its
forms
everywhere

13. Goal
1:
End
poverty
in
all
its
forms
everywhere

14. Goal
1:
End
poverty
in
all
its
forms
everywhere

15. Civil
Society
OrganisaBons
(CSO)

16. The
Global
Sustainable
Development
Report
(GSDR)
+2,000
scien=sts
+20
UN
Agencies
+
50
UN
staff
+40,000
authors
reviewed,
from,
+2,200
ci=es
+150,000
ar=cles
on
SD
hPps://sustainabledevelopment.un.org

17. The
Role
for
Business
“Business
is
a
vital
partner
in
achieving
the
Sustainable
Development
Goals.
Companies
can
contribute
through
their
core
ac:vi:es,
and
we
ask
companies
everywhere
to
assess
their
impact,
set
ambi:ous
goals
and
communicate
transparently
about
the
results.”
Ban
Ki-­‐moon,
United
Na:ons,
Secretary-­‐General

19. The
Business
Case
for
SDGs
1. The
4
billion
people
who
live
in
poverty
represent
a
largely
untapped
market
of
USD
5
Trillion
(according
to
data
by
IFC
and
WRI).
2. The
global
market
for
green
technologies
–
ranging
across
energy
efficiency,
water
management,
sustainable
mobility,
environmentally
friendly
energies
and
storage,
resource
and
material
efficiency,
and
the
“circular
economy”
–
will
grow
to
over
EUR
3
Trillion
by
2020
(according
to
research
by
Siemens).
3. The
topics
the
SDGs
address
are
energizing
investment
in
research
and
development
and
start-­‐ups.
This
kind
of
impact
inves=ng
could
see
new
capital
inflows
of
up
to
USD
1
Trillion
by
2020
(see
Brooks,
David.
“How
to
Leave
a
Mark,”
New
York
Times.
January
27,
2015).

20. 19
www.globalsustain.org
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|
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|
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LONDON
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MELBOURNE
info@globalsustain.org
–
michael.spanos@globalsustain.org

22. 21