Russian UN Global Compact’s Local Network has become a participant of the Action Platform ‘Decent Work in Global Supply Chains’.
UN GC Action Platforms are new tools of business participation in achieving sustainable future, which bring together participants and partners of UN GC under the leadership community framework.
The platforms are expected to transmit comprehensive solutions to sustainable development objectives in an attempt to redirect financial flows, foster innovation, and identify the best solutions regarding the chosen key directions: the platforms include a large variety of practices and mechanisms, united by specific areas of interest for discussion, practical study and promotion of selected topics.
The UN Global Compact’s Action Platform on Decent Work in Global Supply Chains will build an alliance of companies committed to taking action to advance decent work in the supply chain and to inspire and advocate for change at scale. This Platform will identify and highlight relevant standards, initiatives and good practices, and develop thought leadership. The focus will be made on enhancing social dialogue, ensuring fair wages and ending child labour, forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking. By launching a business-led advocacy for workers’ rights and facilitating partnerships and collaboration at the local level, the Platform aims to help build a human rights based approach to the 2030 Agenda.
Supply chains are one of the most important levers for business to create positive impact in the world, with an estimated 80% of global trade passing through them annually. Companies that are committed to take action to advance decent work in the supply chain can significantly improve the lives of many people (often of those who will benefit the most from Sustainable Development) and could lift millions out of poverty. The United Nations estimates that almost 21 million people are victims of forced labour, 780 million women and men who are working, but not earning enough to lift themselves and their families out of poverty, 150 million children worldwide are engaged in child labour.
The Platform provides opportunities to take part in discussion and development of key tools, aimed at advancement of international and national approaches to sustainable procurement and supply chains in a community with leading world experts, including for the purpose of identification best prospects of business strategies update for specific companies and their coalitions. The Platform participants will possess exceptional resources to promote the agenda of decent work in global supply chains and to define leadership patterns in this area. They will also gain access to global roundtable series, knowledge events and databases, containing the results of targeted research initiatives, country briefs and relevant reviews, analytical guidelines and information resources to ensure progress on the topic.
Other UN GC Action Platforms
Breakthrough Innovation for the SDGs
In the spotlight. The potential of disruptive technologies to create the sustainable business models of the future that challenge current mindsets as well as unprecedented collaboration across all sectors in society. The Platform connects forward-thinking companies with some of the world’s leading exponential thinkers and innovators to explore how disruptive technologies – from Artificial Intelligence and 3D-printing to robotic cars and synthetic biology - can help create the sustainable business models of the future. The Platform will enable interlinking corporate sustainability world with leading innovation centers to work together to create the sustainable business models.
Benefits of participation. Belong to a professional community of innovators, thinkers and entrepreneurs, developing business-models of the future that address the SDGs and provide a gateway to new market opportunities and also design and test solutions in that regard. The Platform participants will have exclusive access to a series of curated content and activities including innovation knowledge series, workshops, online briefs, podcasts and case studies, as well as specialized long-term subprogrammes in the Platform.
Financial Innovation for the SDGs
In the spotlight. Search, discussion and development of innovative financial instruments with the potential to direct private finance towards critical sustainability solutions. The Platform will function as a laboratory for the development of new innovative instruments on investment and financial strategies, which support the SDGs. One of the key goals of the Platform is to find a way to improve the risk/return profile of SDG investments to attract institutional investors.
Benefits of participation. Take part in mapping current and emerging financial instruments, which will develop within the SDG framework, including new models of business and finance, reducing financial risk, providing investment scale, matching profiles of institutional investors (including companies, banks, insurance entities, asset managers, public and private pension funds, etc.). There will also be an opportunity to take part in a pilot programme to launch innovative solutions across various economic sectors. The Platform participants will get access to mapping of financial innovations, new benchmarking approaches and analytics, to strategic information, findings relevant of research, reviews, assessments, and also to specialized activities and subprogrammes.
Pathways to Low-Carbon and Resilient Development
In the spotlight. Search of for ways to enhance country-level and global action to meet the ambitions of the Paris Agreement and the SDGs. The Platform is aimed to provide a collaborative space for companies and key stakeholders to share, learn, and identify effective ways to contribute to Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) and SDG implementation.
Benefits of participation. Access to knowledge base and practical tools on main trends in climate change adaptation and its effects on business and financial investment sector at a country level with a possibility to receive individual recommendations on business-planning adjustment in that regard.
The Platform participants receive a chance to engage in a series of policy dialogues, industry-level workshops and relevant global and national climate and SDG conferences, as well as access to webinar series, briefings and specialized subprogrammes in the Platform.
Business for Inclusion and Gender Equality
In the spotlight. Transformation of business to help provide wide and equal opportunities for all and end discrimination on any ground (gender, ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability), which is viewed as a limitation to sustainable development. This Platform is designed to find out interconnection between inclusive and fair business approach and its efficiency, CSR leadership, as far as progress on SDGs should narrow down any framework of inequality.
Benefits of participation. Participants of this Platform take part in analysis of existing inclusion practices and development of new policies and strategies on the topic, based on own experience and expert resources provided to obtain new partnership opportunities. Participants will fine-tune their inclusion strategies to maximize impact and connect to corporate sustainability objectives. They will launch new business practices or expand existing initiatives to create opportunities for economically and socially excluded people, and engage in multi-stakeholder partnerships and business-led advocacy to promote the social and economic benefits of inclusion.
Health is Everyone’s Business
In the spotlight. Exploration of how business can drive sustainable change to the future of health & well-being.
Benefits of participation. An opportunity to define corporate responsibility for SDG 3, participate in creation of guiding principles for how to take business action in the best way to achieve these goals at the intersection of the interests of society and business. They will facilitate forming a set of business-practices considering experience and interests of a company to foster positive changes. Participants will gain exclusive access to a series of curated content and activities, databases, containing relevant updated information and political briefs on interconnection between health, well-being and sustainability assessments.
Business for Humanitarian Action and Peace
In the spotlight. Exploration of opportunities and creation of innovative solutions to support conflict-affected people. The Platform is aimed at formation of new tools of humanitarian, innovative, investment and other kinds of assistant to people living in conflict-affected areas also those in recipient countries who have been forced to flee their homes. It also envisages creation of information and advocacy campaign to find new innovative solutions on these issues.
Benefits of participation. Access to a relevant UN database, containing information on current opportunities for business to support conflict-affected population and communities with provision of concrete and effective ways to support identifying, elaboration and implementation of solutions on these issues in partnership with though leaders representing companies, UN entities, governments, civil society activists. Participants will identify concrete and effective ways to support displaced people in recipient countries and/or vulnerable populations in conflict/post-conflict countries while further integrating sustainable development into their business operations, and will also get exclusive access to a series of curated content and activities.
Reporting on the SDGs
In the spotlight. Search and creation of best practices of SDG corporate reporting based on GRI Standards and the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact. A special emphasis of the Platform is on making reporting more accessible to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The UN Global Compact and GRI are inviting representatives from leading businesses to join a Corporate Action Group as part of the SDG Action Platform, to help influence a greater multi-stakeholder movement that will play a pivotal role shaping the future of corporate reporting on the SDGs.
Benefits of participation. Access to a community of global experts, peers, and investors to gain cutting-edge insights and help evolve own reporting practices, at the same time participating in development of new global practice of corporate reporting, key discussions and UN event on the topic. Participants will gain exclusive access to resources and materials of the Platform at the same time engaging in corporate learning programme.