The renewable energy industry, in addition to providing access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy, can improve people’s quality of life by helping to mitigate climate change, alleviate poverty, fight hunger, increase access to healthcare, education, and clean water, and protect life on land and in water.
The Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), a joint centre of Columbia Law School and the Earth Institute at Columbia University, in conjunction with non-profits Equitable Origin, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), has compiled a report, “Mapping the Renewable Energy Sector to the Sustainable Development Goals: An Atlas”, which highlights the role the renewable energy industry can play in meeting the UN’s goals for a better and more sustainable future for all.
This is a summary of the report.
Click here to download the full report
In 2015, the 193 United Nations (UN) member states unanimously adopted a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals, establishing a consensus development agenda and accompanying targets to be met by 2030. These goals built upon the successes of the Millennium Development Goals to create a common framework for equitable, inclusive, and environmentally sound economic development. The 2030 agenda is grounded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international human rights treaties, and “seek(s) to realise the human rights of all.”
The renewable energy industry is instrumental to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to realise a better In addition to core contributions to the achievement of SDG 7, which focuses on access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, and SDG 13, on urgent action to combat climate change, the renewable energy sector can also make critical contributions to the other 15 SDGs, including helping to alleviate poverty, fight hunger, increase access to healthcare, education, and clean water, and protect life on land and in water.
The renewable energy industry and the SDGs
There are numerous examples of the positive contributions that renewable energy companies are already making to the SDGs; several examples of these contributions are noted throughout the atlas. In East Africa, for example, manufacturers and developers are partnering to source and install solar arrays locally while stimulating regional economic development and creating jobs.
In Taiwan, offshore wind developers are working with local fisherman to negotiate cooperation agreements that compensate communities for impacts, employ community members, establish standards of environmental protection, and share of local weather data. In Puerto Rico, companies are re-electrifying the island in the wake of Hurricane Maria and providing for future disaster resilience.
Nevertheless, given the urgency and scale at which renewables must be deployed to meet the world’s sustainable development and climate goals, it is critical that the industry understand the full range of its potential opportunities and impacts on all of the SDGs. These opportunities and impacts can stem from provision of renewable energy itself, production practices, supply chain sourcing, and corporate governance.
While the industry is critical to the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon global economy, some renewable energy projects have been linked to allegations of human rights abuse, including labour rights concerns, harm to indigenous peoples’ livelihoods, land, and territories, and attacks against human rights defenders. As the SDGs “seek to realise the human rights of all,” and more than 90% of the SDG targets are linked to international human rights and labour standards, companies must respect human rights in their core operations, in line with responsibilities under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
Respect for human rights is essential for the renewable energy industry to maximise its positive contributions to the SDGs, enable both a fast and sustainable transition to a low-carbon economy, and ensure that contributions to some SDGs do not come at the expense of others.
Atlas organisation
This atlas intends to serve as a guide for renewable energy developers, operators, and investors, as well as their government partners, to maximise the renewable energy sector’s contributions to the SDGs. Each chapter in this atlas corresponds to one of the 17 SDGs, and includes the following:
While government investment, regulation, and planning will be essential to achieve the SDGs, this atlas focuses on what companies can do, both alone and in collaboration with communities, governments, investors, and industry peers, to promote sustainable development.
The business case for alignment to the SDGs and human rights principles
There is a strong business case for companies to adopt the recommendations in this atlas and contribute to the SDGs in a way which is meaningful and lives up to evolving global expectations of business actors. By aligning conduct to the SDGs and respecting human rights and environment through core business, supply chain management, and collaboration with other stakeholders, companies can:
Renewable energy is a linchpin of the Sustainable Development Agenda. This atlas enumerates concrete steps that renewable energy companies can take to maintain a social license to operate, build political support for pro-renewable energy policies, and promote corporate citizenship. Responsible business conduct is crucial to the renewable energy industry’s long-term success and to ensuring both a fast and fair transition to a low-carbon economy.
Acknowledgment
This summary is published here with permission.
Click here to download the full report
Contact United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UNSDSN), info@unsdsn.org