The Emerging Goal Of Sustainable Development And The Goals Of Sustainable Development

John Mackey, founder of Whole Foods once said "Business social responsibility should not be coerced; it is a voluntary decision that the entrepreneurial leadership of every company must make on its own." (Mackey, 2005) In today’s society it is increasingly common for businesses to actively identify and become directly involved in the country and the global social issues and needs. It is now common

The most commonly used definition of sustainable development is still that given in the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (1987), i.e. sustainable development is ‘a process to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.’ Sustainable development is therefore about creating a better life for all people in ways that will be as viable in the future as they are at present. In other words, sustainable development is based on principles of sound husbandry of the world’s resources, and on equity in the way those resources are used and in the way in which the benefits obtained from them are distributed (Making Tourism More Sustainable, 2005).

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are global initiatives in which countries all over the world are entitled towards achieving. Out of the 17 SDGs, Sustainable goal number 5 takes about the achievement of gender equality (Kumar & Vivekadhish, 2016). Gender issues have always been experienced ever since the beginning of man. Women do not have the same rights and opportunities as men in society and this why this goal number 5 was developed. Egypt, a North African country, has yet to fully attain this SDG. The following study will discuss some of the challenges in which Egypt as a nation is facing towards the achievement of this goal. The paper will also outline some solutions in which Egypt has adapted and solutions that can be used to achieve this goal. Gender should be perceived on a spectrum, not as two opposing sets of ideals.

Since the 19th century, some investors often aligned their values with the market; an example, is religious investors avoiding sin stock. This began in the 1970s when socially responsible investing was gaining ground in microfinance and corporate social responsibility. Such early beginnings laid out the foundations of impact investing. In the modern world, impact investment describes financial ventures that, besides profits, also actively pursue aspects of social and environmental improvement. This involves the pooling of a number of players besides just willing investors, as it requires intermediaries and establishes enterprises to achieve several objectives through the use of a variety of investment vehicles across asset

Social enterprises can take the ideal of social responsibility intertwining with revenue too far. Businesses that supposedly show profit by hiring the disadvantaged can be based on an unsupportable claim that social enterprises help government (Jones & Donmoyer, 2015). For instance, the founder of Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, claimed that his business is new type of business that focuses on serving impoverished individuals and sustaining itself through earned revenue (Jones & Donmoyer, 2015). He failed to mention or acknowledge the importance of how Grameen Bank was initially capitalized with the support of philanthropy (Jones & Donmoyer, 2015). This sends the wrong message to donors that investing in a for-profit organization is just as good or even better than

Economy: boost the social enterprise industry by being a role model business that successfully generates profits and at the same time tackles a social

“Businesses are an integral part of the communities in which they operate. Good executives know that their long-term success is based on continued good relations with a wide range of individuals, groups and institutions. Smart firms know that business can’t succeed in societies that are failing—whether this is due to social or environmental challenges, or governance problems. Moreover, the general public has high expectations of the private sector in terms of responsible behavior. Consumers expect goods and services to reflect socially and environmentally responsible business behavior at competitive prices. Shareholders also are searching for enhanced financial performance that integrates social and environmental

Environmentally sound investments are more available this century than ever before. Such investments are known as Social Funds. Social Funds made its debut

Currently, there is a wide divide in the landscape of social enterprise finance. On one side, much of the available supply of impact investment capital is seeking a “sweet spot” where attractive financial returns combine with positive social, economic or environmental impact. Meanwhile, there is an unmet demand from social enterprises that are operationally and structurally ready to absorb financial support (Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring 2014).

I have always admired to be a businessperson from my childhood. I used to tell people that I would become a business tycoon when I grow up. I lived with that dream and still trying my level best to get close to that desire. However, the type of businessperson I wanted to be, shaped into a social entrepreneur throughout these days. I am a very inquisitive and adventurous person who loves to enjoy travelling and exploring new things. This enthusiasm for freedom and independence motivates me to set up a venture of my own. The social entrepreneurship is the perfect fit that matches my interests and goals. The social entrepreneurship has a huge impact on the social, environmental and economical circumstances of any country.

Climate change, Demographic changes, food security and other emerging global trends present both risks and opportunities for investors to explore new markets and sectors. Trillions of dollars will be required, from both public and private sectors, to finance sustainable development. According to a report from the Global Sustainable Investing Alliance, total assets allocated in sustainable investing, an investment approach that considers environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in portfolio selection and management, have expanded dramatically in recent years, rising from $13.3 trillion in 2012 to reach a total of $21.4 trillion at the start of 2014. This is a remarkable accomplishment, however, it scratches only the surface, when compared to $294 trillion of global financial assets.

Sustainable development. A concept that has only recently become highlighted and pursued by the international community. In a country like Nigeria, there is focus on economic growth on the sustaining of their people, not the interest of the environment, however this trend is beginning to change as the country is moving toward a future of power from alternative sources, such as solar power and wind power (Our Objectives, n.d.). Sustainable development, according to the Brundtland Report, “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to the meet their own needs.”(IISD) The United Nations has been at the forefront of this drive for a more sustainable, namely with the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which highlight not only environmental aspects, but also societal (human right-based) (e.g. No Poverty, focus on Gender Inequality). Prior to the creation of the SDGs, were the Millennial Development Goals (MDGs) during the beginning of the 21st Century, which eventually became the SDGs. The SDGs implemented several new points that seemingly “filled the gaps”, so-to-speak, left by the MDGs. These goals were adopted in September of 2015 with an expected fruition date of 2030 (Madeley 2015).

A comprehensive interview schedule is given to 60 samples of private organizations in order to know the sector-wise investment on social causes. The sample respondents are made to rank the sector-wise investment and found that 23.7% companies work on environment protection, 19% on women empowerment and health protection and awareness creation, 12.6% work on ICT development, 9.9% on educational development, 6.8% on religion purpose and 9% on other issues in society.

The terms Sustainable and Sustainability are used to describe many different approaches for improving our life. Sustainability is about people and culture, our environment, jobs or countries. Could be defended as an ability or capacity of something to be maintained or to sustain itself. It 's about taking what we need to live now. There is many departments of sustainability but the main are three environmental sustainability, economic sustainability and social sustainability. The term sustainability in a business or company means a lot. Business sustainability is the management and coordination of environmental, social and finance demands and concerns to ensure responsible ethical and ongoing success. Sustainability is about good business and successful life improvement.

The Sustainable Development Goals are a set of global agendas set by the United Nations to be achieved by the year 2030. They are a continuation of the Millennium Development Goals, which were framed through the Millennium Deceleration in 2000 to address the needs of the world poor (1). The Millennium Development goals included a set of eight easily stated goals with 21 targets and 48 indicators to measure progress (1). Amongst them- reducing child mortality (MDG 4), improving maternal health (MDG 5) and combating HIV-AIDS, malaria and other diseases (MDG 6)- were specifically aimed at improving health (2). This approach provided a clear and focused direction for many of the stakeholders, to work on realizing these goals. The SDGs, on the other hand, are longer with 17 Goals and 126 targets (3). Unlike the MDGs, the SDGs contain one cohesive health goal (SDG 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages), with 9 specific targets and 4 means of implementation within the targets (4) . There is criticism claiming that a switch from three to one goal would reduce the global focus on health. I argue that a simplified SDG goal is sufficient because it builds upon, and strengthens the template set-up in the MDGs. Furthermore, the four proposed ways of implementation to achieve these targets further reinforces the objective (1). Thus, if the work that has been laid out in the MDG era continues with a sustained focus, there is no reason why the priority