In 2015, the United Nations adopted a resolution on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs for short. The time has now come for these to be implemented.

Antonia Strachwitz is responsible for Communications at LGT Impact Ventures

The so-called Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outline the 17 goals that the UN adopted at the end of 2015. These include the elimination of poverty, clean energy for all and world peace.

This agenda for saving the world, developed by the UN’s highest body, however, also has its weaknesses: the SDGs are so ambitious and broadly defined, that reaching them by the 2030 deadline could, to put it kindly, be considered illusory.

Prominent Faces and Brands

Optimists, however, will not be discouraged by the tight timeline, and will instead concentrate on the positive aspects: the international organization composed of 193 member states has succeeded in reaching consensus on the fight against the biggest threats to humankind, and intends to take action against them.

The goals set the direction for the action to be taken by member states and other stakeholders. At the same time, they serve as a global marketing campaign, intended to shift awareness and encourage mobilization at all levels.

And the SDGs have indeed already received broad support: concerts and events, elaborately produced videos, prominent faces and brands – numerous stakeholders are consciously using the sustainability goals for branding purposes, to market their social and environmental commitment, and are thus contributing to the dissemination of the agenda.

The Responsibility of the Financial Sector

Enormous responsibility for the implementation of the SDG agenda lies with the private sector and the finance industry. They have the power – through corporate culture as well as investment criteria and investment decisions with a conscious focus on social and environmental added value – to implement positive measures on a large scale.

The UN member states call explicitly on the financial sector to make an active contribution to the implementation of the SDGs by means of impact and other socially responsible investments.

It was against this backdrop that Amit Bouri, CEO of the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), made a clear appeal to investors in a guest commentary published in «Institutional Investor» in the fall of 2016. He wrote that if the financial sector does not focus on redirecting at least part of its assets to impact investments, the SDGs will be at risk of failing; and time is of the essence.

Encouraging Trends

There are many examples of a paradigm change toward sustainability that give reason for optimism: celebrities such as Mark Zuckerberg (Chan Zuckerberg Initiative), and Al Gore (Generation Investment Management), have shown in recent years not only that major investors can have a positive impact, but how they can do so.

Shortly after Donald Trump’s election victory, Bill Gates announced that he is the biggest investor in a new fund that aims to fight climate change and support innovations for energy solutions: the fund has a volume of 1 billion dollars.

A number of the world’s biggest financial institutions (e.g. Deutsche Bank, TPG, Credit Suisse, UBS, J.P. Morgan) have also discovered the potential of impact investing, and have launched initiatives in this segment. LGT implements its impact investing activities through «LGT Impact Ventures» (LGT IV). LGT IV’s portfolio companies contribute to the realization of eleven of the total 17 SDGs.

Making Impact Investing Mainstream

Capitalism has the potential to become the driver for securing the future of the planet. In order to meet the UN’s monumental SDG objectives, impact investing must become mainstream.

In his appeal, GIIN CEO Amit Bouri put this into concrete terms: he urged all investors to make at least one impact investment in order to make a targeted contribution to the SDGs. Bouri closed his article with words that resonate: «This investment is not just for profit – but for survival.»

Antonia Strachwitz is responsible for Communications at LGT Impact Ventures. After completing her studies in East Asian studies and economics, she worked for several years as part of the Liechtenstein delegation to the UN in New York.

At LGT, she wants to make a contribution to improving the quality of life of disadvantaged people using an entrepreneurial approach. She blogs about trends and issues surrounding impact investing and sustainable investments.