Wellington, 30 January 2018: In late 2017, the Sustainable Business Council, WBCSD’s Global Network partner in New Zealand, ran an event to inspire its members to engage with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and talk through practical ways to do this.
Kate Alcock, SBC’s Climate and Resources Manager, set the scene, explaining what the SDGs represent and why they matter to business. Vector’s Chief Risk Officer, Kate Beddoe, demonstrated the company’s strategic approach to the anchoring the SDGs in their business. Vector Limited is New Zealand's largest distributor of electricity and gas and is leading the transformation of the energy sector to create a new energy future.
Beddoe concluded that the SDGs create a shared understanding on global sustainability challenges, provide a basis for business ambition on sustainability and offer a common language between stakeholders from business to civil society. She also argued that the SDGs enable avenues to engage the board on sustainability as the 17 goals highlight significant business opportunities.
Watch this video to follow the event and take a look at the presentation slides for more information.
Looking ahead
And it doesn’t stop there. The SDGs are pushing forward with an SDG Summit in Wellington on 23 April 2018. The Victoria University of Wellington, the New Zealand National Commission for UNESCO, the EU Delegation to New Zealand, SBC and thinkstep are convening this inaugural summit to advance the conversation and understanding of the Global Goals.
With a clear call to action for New Zealand, the aim is to the anchor the SDGs across decision-making processes throughout the country.
According to Judge Andrew Becroft, Children’s Commissioner, “there are 1.12 million young people, under the age of 18, in New Zealand. That’s almost a quarter of our population. The Sustainable Development Goals are their future.”
