5 July 2016: CEOs see the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as an opportunity for businesses to rethink and reshape sustainability efforts, according to a study from the UN Global Compact (UNGC) and Accenture. In a “sea change” since 2013, the study finds, a majority of CEOs in 2016 say sustainability issues are central in their strategic planning and business development. These CEOs also report that their respective companies can accurately quantify the business value of their sustainability initiatives.

According to the UN Global Compact (UNGC)-Accenture Strategy CEO Study, 49% of CEOs say business will be the key actor in SDG delivery. The CEOs consulted highlight three requirements to accelerate progress towards the SDGs: expanding coalitions and partnerships across business, government and civil society to drive ambition and achievement on sustainability issues; increasing local level action, including by working with national governments to develop and implement action plans to achieve the SDGs; and promoting innovation in digital technologies and business models. The report highlights challenges related to investor pressure, such as aligning market incentives to accelerate actions, and recommends standardized metrics for companies to measure and track their impacts on the SDGs.

Other recent contributions from civil society organizations (CSO) introduce a framework for analyzing the SDGs, present national social and environmental progress through the Social Progress Index, and document international humanitarian assistance efforts. If countries ignore the overlaps among SDGs and targets and “tick off targets one by one,” they risk “perverse outcomes,” concludes a team from the International Council for Science (ICSU) in ‘Nature.’ The researchers present a framework for mapping and assessing interactions among SDG targets. The framework uses a seven-point scale from +3, or indivisible, to -3, or cancelling, to quantify SDG synergies and trade-offs and highlight priorities for integrated policy. The article recommends promoting mutually reinforcing actions to ensure the 2030 Agenda delivers on its potential.

“Inclusive growth requires achieving both economic and social progress,” declares the Social Progress Index, which analyzes how 133 countries meet citizens’ social and environmental needs. The Index measures indicators of basic human needs, foundations of well being and opportunity with the aim of providing a measurement framework to benchmark progress and stimulate progress. The Index features: national level rankings and report cards; sub-national Indexes for Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay; and city-level Indexes for Reykjavik, Iceland and Somerville, US, with additional city-level Indexes planned in the US. Finland ranks first on the list. The Central African Republic ranks last.

The Global Humanitarian Assistance Report (GHA) 2016 stresses that international humanitarian assistance is “neither sufficient nor appropriate to address the full spectrum of people’s needs and vulnerabilities in crisis contexts.” International humanitarian assistance increased for the third consecutive year, according to the report, but the gap between needed financing and contributions to UN-coordinated appeals grew, resulting in a shortfall of US$9.8 billion, or 45% of the total budget. The report recommends: a wide range of resources timed to anticipate and prevent crises; a sophisticated financing toolkit; guarantees on long-term refugee hosting; insurance for natural hazards; and concessional loans. It underscores the role of transparent, comparable data in informing predictable, durable and equitable financing solutions to support refugees and host communities. [UNGC-Accenture Strategy CEO Study] [Nature Article] [Social Progress Index] [GHA 2016 Executive Summary]