Corporate responsibility and biodiversity conservation: challenges and opportunities for companies participating in China’s Belt and Road Initiative

2022 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Eve Bohnett ◽  
Abdoulaye Coulibaly ◽  
Dave Hulse ◽  
Thomas Hoctor ◽  
Bilal Ahmad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Corporate Responsibility ◽  
Critical Infrastructure ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations

Summary China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), designed to build critical infrastructure and coordinate economic growth, is the most significant development initiative in modern history. The BRI has a documented vision for sustainability, including environmental impact assessments and responsibility tenets. Despite this, a growing body of literature has found adverse effects of BRI projects on protected land and species. To understand corporate responsibility and regulations for companies participating in the BRI, we gathered information on 260 BRI companies using the Refinitiv Eikon BRI Connect database and the China Global Investment Tracker. The results revealed a significant gap in corporate responsibility reporting for biodiversity impacts, environmental restoration, environmental project financing and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 14 ‘Life below Water’ and 15 ‘Life on Land’. The modest fraction of companies that we found to report biodiversity accountability highlights the need to restructure and incentivize the reporting of environmental and biodiversity risks. The current evidence of limited adherence to responsibility measures highlights a clear opportunity to align BRI development with the BRI’s vision for sustainability, and to strengthen links for policy engagement within Chinese regulatory frameworks and international obligations at the United Nations within its SDG framework.

scholarly journals Signs of the United Nations SDGs in University Curriculum: The Case of the University of Iceland

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 8958
Author(s):  
Auður Pálsdóttir ◽  
Lára Jóhannsdóttir
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Good Health ◽  
School Of Education ◽  
University Curriculum ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Zero Hunger ◽  
The University

Sustainability is a pressing topic in all universities. Institutions are determining what the implications of such a development are, e.g., on how courses that students are provided with should develop, what to change, what to add, and how these changes could be brought about. The purpose of this research was to provide an overview of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the curriculum of five schools at the University of Iceland and an overview of individual SDGs for the university, to identify the main challenges and opportunities for improvement. Data collection included analysis of every single university’s course description and learning outcomes using a curriculum analysis key designed for the SDGs. Results indicated strong signs of SDG 4 (quality education) at the School of Education and the School of Social Sciences and SDG 3 (good health and well-being) at the School of Health Sciences. For the university, the results revealed a very limited emphasis on four SDGs, i.e., SDG 1 (no poverty), SDG 2 (zero hunger), SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation), and SDG 13 (climate actions). The results can serve as a benchmark for other universities, e.g., for comparison of results and their situation when creating policy and practices that include implementing the SDGs. Additionally, they can be used for comparison within the University of Iceland as a whole or within each school to monitor change.

Exploring the challenges and opportunities of the United Nations sustainable development goals: a dialogue between a climate scientist and management scholars

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 552-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Umesh Mukhi ◽  
Camilla Quental
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Earth Science ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Climate Scientist ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
The Individual

Purpose The 17 United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs) represent a powerful guide to foster actions to achieve a more sustainable planet. This paper aims to analyze the challenges and opportunities of SDGs based on an interview conducted with climate scientist Dr Carlos Nobre. In this interview, Nobre addresses the opportunities and challenges of the SDGs. More broadly, the aim is to raise awareness among scholars, policymakers and citizens about what is considered to be the most important societal questions of the times. Design/methodology/approach The authors analyze the interview conducted with this prominent and experienced climate scientist through academic lenses of interpretive approach. Further, the authors are bringing important reflections from this interview and linking it to Rasche et al.’s (2017) model, which cut across different levels and take into consideration the individual, organizational and societal levels in the relationship for SDG. Findings The interview reveals that all SDGs are interlinked and are of equal importance. However, the authors discuss three important challenges and opportunities addressed by Dr Nobre regarding the implementation of the SDGs. These are education, climate change and peace. Originality/value To better understand the challenges and opportunities of SDGs and how to act on them as citizens and management scholars, the authors believe that it is imperative to consider the viewpoint of climate scientists who, through their knowledge on earth science, have been contributing globally to the United Nations SDGs agenda at global and local levels. In this paper, the authors analyze the challenges and opportunities of SDGs based on an interview conducted with climate scientist Dr Carlos Nobre. In this interview, Nobre addresses the opportunities and challenges of the SDGs.

scholarly journals Physical Activity Promotion and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Building Synergies to Maximize Impact

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Deborah Salvo ◽  
Leandro Garcia ◽  
Rodrigo S. Reis ◽  
Ivana Stankov ◽  
Rahul Goel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Physical Activity Promotion ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Activity Promotion ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Promotion Strategies ◽  
The United Nations

Background: Many of the known solutions to the physical inactivity pandemic operate across sectors relevant to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Methods: The authors examined the contribution of physical activity promotion strategies toward achieving the SDGs through a conceptual linkage exercise, a scoping review, and an agent-based model. Results: Possible benefits of physical activity promotion were identified for 15 of the 17 SDGs, with more robust evidence supporting benefits for SDGs 3 (good health and well-being), 9 (industry, innovation, and infrastructure), 11 (sustainable cities and communities), 13 (climate action), and 16 (peace, justice, and strong institutions). Current evidence supports prioritizing at-scale physical activity-promoting transport and urban design strategies and community-based programs. Expected physical activity gains are greater for low-and middle-income countries. In high-income countries with high car dependency, physical activity promotion strategies may help reduce air pollution and traffic-related deaths, but shifts toward more active forms of travel and recreation, and climate change mitigation, may require complementary policies that disincentivize driving. Conclusions: The authors call for a synergistic approach to physical activity promotion and SDG achievement, involving multiple sectors beyond health around their goals and values, using physical activity promotion as a lever for a healthier planet.

scholarly journals Striving for the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): what will it take?

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anurag Saxena ◽  
Meghna Ramaswamy ◽  
Jon Beale ◽  
Darcy Marciniuk ◽  
Preston Smith
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Transformative Learning ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations

AbstractThe United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) aim to develop healthy societies aligned with collective well-being. Although commendable efforts have been made, there has been a paucity of coordination and integration across sectors. While progress towards these goals has made a marked difference in peoples’ lives, it has been slow, episodic, and geographically isolated. This article dissects the challenges and opportunities and addresses the interplay between conceptualization, implementation, and evaluation. We suggest that philosophic, strategic, and operational alignment between and strategic attention to transformative learning for education and organizational learning, leadership (that involves moral courage, judicious use of power and narratives, creating a sense of belonging, and adopting an integrated and dialectic approach) and robust partnerships across public, private and plural (civil society) sectors would increase the likelihood of success and sustainability beyond 2030. A dialectic approach integrating outcomes with SDGs’ inspirational nature to guide the discourse would allow for emergence.

Insights on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals scope: Are they aligned with a ‘strong’ sustainable development?

2020 ◽  
Vol 252 ◽  
pp. 119574 ◽  
Author(s):  
Biagio F. Giannetti ◽  
Feni Agostinho ◽  
Cecília M.V.B. Almeida ◽  
Gengyuan Liu ◽  
Luis E.V. Contreras ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations
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