Sustainable Development: Goals and Challenges

The assignment delves into the concept of sustainable development, focusing on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the United Nations. It examines the goals' various aspects, including social, economic, and environmental dimensions, and analyzes the challenges associated with their implementation. The importance of achieving sustainability for global well-being is highlighted, along with the roles played by different stakeholders in driving progress toward these ambitious targets.

Running head: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Name of the Student:
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Executive Summary
The aim of this report is to show a deeper understanding towards Sustainable Development
Goals and discuss it with reference to business operations.The report will also show the
reasons to adopt SDGs in case of business, impacts and disadvantages of SDGs. The report
will conclude with recommendations to incorporate the sustainable development goals into
the business operations.

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Table of Contents
What is Sustainable Development Goals?.................................................................................3
Why Should Business Adapt Sustainable Development Goals?................................................3
Impacts of Sustainable Development Goals in Business...........................................................6
Risks of Sustainable Development Goals in Business...............................................................8
General Discussion.....................................................................................................................9
Conclusion................................................................................................................................10
References................................................................................................................................12

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What is Sustainable Development Goals?
United Nations has set seventeen global goals, which is collectively called Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) (Griggs et al., 2013). It includes No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Good
Health and Well-Being, Quality Education, Gender Equality, Clean Water and Sanitation,
Affordable and Clean Energy, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry, Innovation and
infrastructure, Reduced Inequalities, Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible
Consumption and Production, Climate Change, Life Below Water, Life on land, Peace,
Justice and Strong Institutions and partnerships for the Goals. Within seventeen global goals,
there are 169 total numbers of targets (Nino, 2018). The goals that include a number of
economic, environmental and social development issues are applicable for both the
‘developing’ and ‘developed’ countries. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are also
known as “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" or
Agenda 2030 in short (Sachs, 2012). The United Nations will try to achieve these goals by
the year 2030.
The aim of this essay is to show a deeper understanding towards Sustainable
Development Goals and discuss it with reference to business operations (Topic A). The report
will also show the reasons to adopt SDGs in case of business, impacts and disadvantages of
SDGs.
Why Should Business Adapt Sustainable Development Goals?
According to Carroll and Buchholtz (2014), businesses use natural resources for their
economic and operational growth. However, with the growing economy, an enlarging list of
health, societal and environmental issues have been arising that have created risks in the
growth model. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have aimed to transform the

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poverty, poor education and health system in our society, improve the communities and
cities, and address gender inequality and climate change. The seventeen goals that have been
set for creating the transformation at large in the world will help to sustain the business in
long-term. According to Griggs et al. (2013), the goals that collectively propose a new
developmental pathway should create a partnership between the civil society, governments
and business operations to work effectively. Each entity needs help from the others to
transform the society and therefore the impact is interconnected.
Millar and Roots (2012)have discussed the impact of the business operations in urban
areas in Australia and adaptation of the Sustainable Development Goals by the Government.
The author has stated that the reason for accommodating the Sustainable Development Goals
within the business arena is to gain sustainability. Sustainability is important for the
continuous development of the business operations. It is related to the profit of the business.
The author has illustrated this issue within the business operations of urban areas in Australia.
He stated that the cities act as the economic powerhouses. With the future employment and
the prosperity, the development of the urban areas has destroyed the quality of life as well. In
Australia, the congestion has already cost 16.5 billion dollars annually and it could be
doubled by 2030 (Tomlinson, 2012). The urban lifestyle has also affected the health of the
citizens and diseases such as obesity has posed major challenges to the health system of the
city dwellers. Unemployment is also another issue that has been created due to overgrowing
rates of urban areas in Australia. 16.4 % of 20-24 years of age are unemployed (Milner, Page
&LaMontagne, 2013).
On the other hand, according to Tomlinson (2012), the Sustainable Development
Goals are important to remove the challenges of the business operations in the city. The
author has illustrated some of the practical examples that could easily influence to create
revenues in business. Through research conducted by AlphaBeta, the author has stated that

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providing affordable houses to the citizens could generate extra 8 billion dollars revenues
annually. The renewable energy in the city space could create economic opportunities that
could worth of 9 billion dollars by 2030.
Rogers, Jalal and Boyd (2012)have stated that any business operation that is working
on the sustainability cannot be limited to the home country. Due to globalization, business
operations are becoming an international phenomenon. The challenges that the businesses
face such as energy, housing, transport, climate resilience or health care are also faced by the
other countries as well and there are demands of the new growth models that embrace
sustainability.
Costanza, Fioramonti and Kubiszewski (2016) have discussed the importance of
partnership in the sustainability of the business. For sustaining the business opportunities, the
companies need to collaborate with the Government and they need help from the Government
to implement their sustainable agendas as well as they need help from the civil societies,
which will directly relish the advantages of the sustainable development. It needs
transparency and accountability on the part of the business operations and businesses have to
work with various peers from different sectors. However, it has been successfully argued by
Bulkeley&Betsill (2015), that for creating business opportunities by the Sustainable
Development Goals, the companies need different kinds of leadership strategies. The leaders
should monitor whether the business operations are addressing the sustainability issues or
not.
Tolba (2013) have talked about the opportunities of the business operations that have
taken the Sustainability Development Goals within their businesses. The entire market could
be disrupted in short-term by the various factors such as sudden lack of the natural resources.
The consumers and the investors are informed about the business growth and they demand

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that the businesses should take responsibility for creating the pressure on our planet and its
populations. The businesses should not only think about their short-term profits, however,
they should focus on their long-term profits, which will arrive by removing the issues related
to natural disasters, economic disparity or social unrest (Biermann et al., 2012). The business
that will understand these challenges and take initiatives will be a step ahead.
It is quite comprehensive that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has
identified that where we would be in 2030 for creating a sustainable world, however, it has
outlined business opportunities and new markets for the companies. It is important to
implement the global goals of the business into the local sphere of the business (Griggs et al.,
2013).
Impacts of Sustainable Development Goals in Business
The business needs to play a critical role to achieve the Sustainable Development
Goals. As stated by Epstein &Buhovac (2014), the seventeen global goals under the
Sustainable Development have set common agenda to acknowledge the world’s social,
economic and environmental challenges and businesses could play a major role in this
context. A perfect framework is necessary for the businesses to report on their contribution
and impact to the society. A transparent and consistent approach is required to report on this
contribution. An increasing pressure is being created on the business leaders for providing
information to the multiple stakeholders about how the business would approach the
Sustainable Development Goals and for this a transparent and trustful relationship with the
stakeholders is necessary.
Businesses that acknowledge the Sustainable Development Goals are able to achieve
various opportunities. A report from the UN Sustainable Development Goals Fund (SDG
Fund) has revealed that the majority of the organizations have already been working to

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integrate the Sustainable Development Goals into their strategies and plans (Bebbington,
Unerman&O'Dwyer, 2014). All the organizations have realized that the process to comply
with the SDGs is by their businesses activities. In order to incorporate the Sustainable
Development Goals, the companies need to be more philanthropic in their approaches.
According to the report of the Business and Sustainable Development Commission, it
has been seen that the development in the four sectors such as energy and materials, food and
agriculture, health and well-being and cities would make 12 trillion dollars of the new
business opportunities by 2030 (Lafferty &Eckerberg, 2013). The report has also found that
the amount of savings from the reduced water use, carbon emission and other consumptions
of the resources are quite high and the approximate estimation is around 17 trillion
dollars(Lafferty &Eckerberg, 2013). The new market opportunities due to SDGs have created
thousands of new jobs in the developing countries. Especially the effective growth potential
has been seen within the low-income markets that deal with affordable housing, healthcare
and food sectors. By attaining the SDGs in these sectors, 380 millions of jobs would be
created by 2030. The businesses that would adopt the sustainability practices and strategies
could enhance their competitiveness and they would gain a long-term economic result (Boons
et al., 2013).
The opportunities to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals in business are
widespread. It has been elaborated by Boons et al. (2013) that the businesses need to develop
new technologies and skills to integrate the sustainable goals into their business operations
and by doing so the businesses could constantly expand their opportunities and could be
benefitted. It is the new commercial opportunity as incorporating sustainable development
goals into the business operations opens a new market (Rasche&Waddock, 2014). New
marketing strategies are required to create an avenue for accessing the new markets.

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Apart from creating new market opportunities, the Sustainable Development Goals
strengthen the relationship with the stakeholders. It also reduces the risks when it deals with
the environmental issues. However, it has been shown by (Tolba, 2013) that integrating
sustainability goals in the business might be challenging as it requires various crucial
considerations. However, taking such risk in business organizations could be beneficial as by
integrating the Sustainable Development Goals as it enhances the values of the organization
and returns on investment of the sustainability by creating strong partnerships with the
Government and various stakeholders. By achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the
business organizations help to stabilize the societies (Tolba, 2013). Organizations that have
embraced the Sustainable Development Goals could attract talented employees and the
employees want to stay in the organization as it has incorporated the sustainability projects in
its business operations.
Risks of Sustainable Development Goals in Business
According to the report of the World Economic Forum, the business leaders are more
concerned with the sustainability risks, which are an emerging issue in the twenty-first
century (Tolba, 2013). The business leaders judge the risks from the two perspectives, such
as the impact and probability of the sustainability. In 2017, the top five risks are Water Crisis,
Failure to Mitigate the Climate Change, Extreme Weather Events, Food Crisis and Profound
Social Instability. The business companies cannot remove these risks by the end of 2017
(Tolba, 2013). However, to deal with the sustainability risks, business companies have taken
strategies, which align the profit goals of the business organization with the Sustainable
Development Goals, which is known as the sustainable risk management.
Recognizing the risks is the first step for the business organization to understand the
impact of the sustainability risks on a business. After identifying the risks, it is important for

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the business organizations to monitor and manage the risks (Tolba, 2013). The sustainability
risk management has become an integral part of various organizations. They have taken
measures that could potentially remove the risks in the sustainable development.
By doing successful sustainable risk management, the business organizations foster a
powerful corporate reputation and it has an important effect on the financial valuation of the
organizations. The business organizations could increase their productivity and competitive
advantages by removing the risks within the goals of sustainable development plans. The
sustainable risk management could improve the values of the shareholders (Carroll
&Buchholtz, 2014). Sustainable risk management could contribute to increase the profits of
the organizations.
General Discussion
Billions of the world’s citizens are continuously living in poverty and they cannot
access the basics for leading a dignified life. However, they desperately need food, shelter
and clothes as they are deprived of the basic needs of life. There are rising inequalities among
the countries. There are huge differences based on the economy between the developed and
developing countries. The differences in opportunities, power, wealth, and gender inequalities
are the key challenges that are continuously creating problems (Bebbington,
Unerman&O'Dwyer, 2014). The unemployment, especially the youth unemployment is a
major concern. These issues along with health factors and environmental scarcity could
restrict the world from the development and progress.
The seventeen Sustainable Development Goals are necessary with 169 associated
targets as it provides the economic, environmental and social development for both the
developed and developing countries. The world leaders have taken a common action and
universal policy agenda based on the global development. The business organizations have a

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major role to play in this context. They should collaborate with the government and civil
society to integrate the sustainability of their business operations (Carroll &Buchholtz, 2014).
There are various advantages of this integration and risks as well. The business leaders need
to transform the negative impacts into the positive effects. They should remove the risks in
the sustainability.
The new targets and goals of the sustainable development have come into the effect
on 1 January 2016. The sustainable goals will guide the decision of the next fifteen years. The
leaders have promised that they will jointly work together to implement the sustainable
agendas within their respective countries. They will not only work for the development of
their respective countries, however, they will work at the regional as well as global levels
(Biermann et al., 2012).
For implementing the sustainable development goals at the regional or global level, a
global partnership is required. This partnership would work in an ethos of global solidarity
(Dahl, 2012). This solidarity should acknowledge the condition of the poorest people and
people in the vulnerable situation. Each country has its primary responsibility for its own
social and economic development. The business organizations should take responsibilities to
materialize the sustainability goals and for this, it needs effective leadership quality (Doppelt,
2017). The business organizations should create a trustful and transparent relationship with
all its stakeholders to implement the sustainable goals successfully. In order to create a better
world, the leaders need to implement the sustainable goals successfully.
Conclusion
The basic concept of the Sustainable Development Goals has been discussed. The
main focus of the paper was to show a deeper understanding towards Sustainable
Development Goals, which has been achieved and it has been discussed with reference to

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business operations. Sustainable Development Goals are not only necessary for the
betterment of the world, human race or environment, it is important for achieving the
competitive advantages of the business operations. The various benefits of incorporating the
Sustainable Development Goals in the Business operations have widely discussed. The paper
has also discussed the risks of integrating the Sustainable Development Goals into the
business operations and the process of removing the risks.
It is recommended that the businesses should embrace the advantages of the
Sustainable Development Goals and work hard for the betterment of our planet. The business
leaders need to align their business goals with the agendas of the Sustainable Developments.
They should acknowledge the importance and necessity of the Sustainable Development
Goals. The risks that exist to incorporate the sustainability in the business operations should
be removed by implementing the strategies of the sustainable risk management. The goals
could be achieved easily by making a partnership with the civil society and the Government.
The business organizations should collaborate with the Government and the civil society to
achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

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