The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) are a great gift to Business

Abstract

Environmental degradation and social tensions have put societies under severe pressures the past couple of decades to such a degree that a historic global political agreement was made in September 2015, when 193 countries signed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, the so-called SDGs or “Global Goals”. The SDGs, and their sub targets, represent a crystal ball for business to “look into the future” and seek long term guidance for investments and new business opportunities. Novozymes, the world's largest manufacturer of enzymes and microbes for industry, has been a frontrunner in sustainability and to our knowledge the first company in the world to align its company purpose, strategy, and long-term targets with the SDG's. Novozymes is now in the process of evaluating and prioritizing its innovation pipeline by potential SDG impact and sourcing new partners for SDG impact. With the SDGs in place, business now have a much clearer set of long-term global priorities with political tail wind, and the alignment between policy makers, civil society and the private sector is much stronger. The SDGs are a great gift to business!