Beginning to evaluate the impact of corporate sustainability on global climate change
In trying to evaluate the impact of corporate sustainability initiatives on global climate change, one comes to the conclusion that the answer is neither straight forward nor is it conclusive. The United Nations’ (UN) group of global social and environmental sustainability targets however, may be one of the tools used to measure corporate sustainability action and impact.
The UN global development goals are now in their second generation: The first was a set of eight targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), implemented in 2000 with a deadline of 2015. The second generation of global targets was recently implemented in 2015 and consists of 17 global targets: In some sense, the new global Sustainable Development Goals seek to address the unfinished business of the MDGs.
“The United Nations had spent since [the year] 2013 trying to get worldwide input — asking for comments and ideas — for what the target goals should be. And many policy analysts examined all of these ideas, which came from individuals, NGOs, governments, religious groups, for what should be considered,” said Adela Gondek, Professor of Public Affairs at Columbia University. “The ideas were grouped and refined, initially at 21 goals, but settling at 17 goals in total” explains Gondek, “But just about everything that was a part of the MDGs — many of which were more anthropocentric — are also found in the SDGs, with the addition of more planetary-focused targets.”
In addition to goals that are included in both the MDGs and SDGs, such as the eradication of extreme hunger and poverty, the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) include targets for life below water and climate action. Such planetary targets are more defined and developed from the MDGs’ all-encompassing, general goal number seven to “ensure environmental sustainability.”
But how does one use the SDGs, expected to frame agendas and political policies over the next 15 years, to evaluate corporate sustainability in particular?
The UN calls upon governments, international organizations, other non-state sectors and individuals, as well as the business sector to contribute to the implementation and success of the SDGs, through the modification of unsustainable consumption and production patterns.
“One might say that the very existence of these [goals], which were excepted by the UN in 2015, in itself becomes a driver for corporations,” said Gondek. “Even though we do not have a worldwide government, and even though the UN does not have an executive branch to enforce that every countries enforce the achievement of the SDGs, nonetheless, the fact that as many people have agreed, becomes a driver in itself,” adds Gondek.
Gondek added that the list of global targets heightens the level of discomfort around global issues, acting as a deterrent against inaction and furthermore, such goals help frame human expectation. “Even at this [global] grandiose level, you still have the goals but how do you know if they [the established targets] are being met?” asked Gondek, “Once the targets are set, within the goals, then we need indicators.”
The aforementioned need for indicators can come in many different forms. Each SDG has includes indicators and temporal targets. The UN report by the Leadership Council of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UNSD) proposes indicators and a monitoring framework for the SDGs. The SDG agenda includes 100 global monitoring indicators.
Global Monitoring Indicators are composed of robust numerical estimations. The UNSD report notes that an indicator-reporting system is not yet in place, but hopes that an international reporting system will be in place by 2018.
What do indicators look like?
The energy data that comes from an energy company’s modified power plant could be one example of an SDG indicator.
An emission scrubbing power plant retrofit, such as the one with which the Amos plant is equip, in itself indicates the company’s move toward sustainable industry, an important part of the industry sector’s climate action.
In response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards that aim to decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, American Electric Power (AEP) have begun to cut down on power plant emissions by installing control equipment to address emissions. The installation of scrubbers at one of the company’s plants, the John Amos Power Plant in West Virginia, was a part of a large environmental retrofit program that AEP announced in 2004. The program was designed to reduce emissions from AEP plants, in order to comply with Clean Air Act Regulations.
In another example of what a goal’s target evaluation may look like, data on what has been achieved by the MDGs is visualized. The eighth MDG, which aimed to develop a Global Partnership for Development, was evaluated with data from 2000 and 2014. Overseas development assistance from rich and developing nations increased by 66% and reached the recorded figure of $134.8 billion in 2013.
However, an important aspect of high-quality data from which global results are analyzed and reported, entirely depends on the confidence level of the reported numbers. Indeed, it is not difficult to be skeptical of the compiled data when individual companies and groups are self-reporting.
“Who are we going to trust with self-reporting?” asked Gondek, “There are many variables that make it difficult to know exactly whether or not we are truly marching towards [a given] goal.” Gondek added, that while the targets do have indicators, they might have some dubious points.
While the SDGs are still in development, regarding the methods with which global data is comprehensively collected, in addition to methods that ensures that data’s integrity, the goals seem to provide a global movement towards common direction; a reason for collaboration.
“Once you have these fundamental conventions in place at a global level, like the 17 SDGs, it might not just drive the idea that we should all be on board with sustainability, but it may also drive the idea, more specifically, in terms of any company that might say, ‘our business does not have to do with the ocean, but we could do something about aiming towards another one of the goals,’” said Gondek. “It might help influence companies to try and perform to the spirit of the SDGs,” added Gondek, “It [the SDGs] becomes a driver of progress.”
