Conflict and instability not only impact people and the environment, but also pose risks to all parts of the business sector. Business for Peace is a platform of close to 150 leading companies and business associations from 37 countries dedicated to catalyzing collaborative action to advance peace.
By joining Business for Peace, companies will be able to:
Better identify and manage business risks and opportunities while reducing operational costs
Engage in public-private dialogue to establish local priorities and implement projects
Align business strategies and operations with good practice from across the globe
Share best and emerging practices and learn from the experiences of peers
Demonstrate leadership and receive recognition for advancing practical solutions
Companies who join Business for Peace commit to:
Paying heightened attention to the implementation of the UN Global Compact Ten Principles in high-risk and conflict-affected areas
Take action to advance peace, either individually or in collaboration with others
Annually communicate on progress
Recognizing that local ownership and knowledge are vital to driving change, Business for Peace has adopted a locally-driven approach. Business for Peace works to develop the capacity of Global Compact Local Networks to support participants in their efforts to conduct responsible business practices and advance peace. 21 Local Networks have already joined this growing movement, including: Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Egypt, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates and United Kingdom.
Successful delivery of the 2030 Agenda requires engagement from all businesses.
Why the Blueprint for SDG Leadership?
Business cannot thrive unless people and planet are thriving. This includes ensuring that the world is on a path to meet all 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda), with 17 SDGs and 169 targets, is a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity. The SDGs are universal, transcend borders and apply across the workplace, marketplace and community. The SDGs are deeply interconnected – a lack of progress on one goal hinders progress on others. In a world of increasing inequality, civil unrest and environmental stress, business will only thrive if the 2030 Agenda is realized.
Take Action on SDG Leadership
Successful delivery of the 2030 Agenda requires engagement from all businesses. The Blueprint for SDG Leadership provides a framework for those companies aiming towards SDG leadership. The 2030 Agenda needs companies of all sizes and from all regions to contribute. Building on an assessment of the qualities of current and past business action on the SDGs, the Blueprint presents a framework for the next generation of business leadership. The intention is to foster contribution to the SDGs at scale.
Platform Activities
Over the course of a year, participants in the Blueprint for SDG Leadership platform will have access to a variety of activities including:
Monthly calls with the multi-stakeholder Task Team, shaping the Blueprint’s development and content
Participation in a global survey of leadership practices that dives into geographic and sectoral differences
An estimated $5-7 trillion a year are needed to realize the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development worldwide. The international community has made clear that the private sector plays and will play a fundamental role in the realization of this agenda, and for the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the years to come.
Together, the UN Global Compact, the UN Environment Finance Initiative (UNEP-FI) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) constitute the largest networks of private and financial sector constituencies — corporates, investors, banks and insurers — dedicated to promoting the SDGs.
With the Global Alliance on SDG Finance, we are joining forces with three distinct but highly complementary platforms on SDG finance, providing a comprehensive set of solutions to mobilize private capital in achieving the Global Goals:
This UN Global Compact Action Platform will bring together a multi-disciplinary group of finance practitioners and experts to develop innovative financial instruments that have the potential to direct private finance towards critical sustainability solutions. The platform will develop guidance on impact investment strategies that support the SDGs, map current and emerging financial instruments, and provide a laboratory for the development of new innovative instruments. Ultimately, the goal is to improve the risk/return profile of SDG investments to attract institutional investors.
The Positive Impact initiative is a collaborative movement started by UNEP FI member banks and investors to foster the impact-based business and financing paradigm we need in order to achieve a sustainable world and the SDGs in particular. Through the Principles for Positive Impact Finance, the Initiative promotes a holistic yet practical framework for financial institutions and their stakeholders to identify, promote and communicate positive impact for sustainable development. Through its Working Groups, it aims to pursue an open-source research and development approach to materializing its vision for an impact-based financing paradigm.
PRI Blueprint & Advisory Group on the SDGsThe PRI has made the SDG agenda an intrinsic part of its next 10-year Blueprint for Responsible Investment and formed an Advisory Group to help align signatory investment decisions and PRI’s work with the SDGs, including:
PRI Blueprint and SDG work program
The SDG Investment Case
Guidance on incorporation of SDGs in asset allocation
