Date of event: 13 June 2017

Location: Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU).

Event description:

Making Global Goals Local Business – Glasgow was formally opened by Professor Pamela Gillies CBE, Principal & Vice-Chancellor, Glasgow Caledonian University. She welcomed attendees and gave a brief description of the University’s wide ranging interests in sustainability and particularly sustainability in the fashion sector. She was followed by Dr Alec Wersun, Senior Lecturer, Glasgow School for Business and Society who also welcomed attendees and spoke briefly about the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME).

Professor Pamela Gillies CBE, GCU

The welcome was concluded by Steve Kenzie, Executive Director, UN Global Compact Network UK who presented some information about

the SDGs Roadshow and why it had been undertaken, including a Eurobarometer survey that looked at awareness of the SDGs across Europe and found it was lowest in the UK. He also introduced attendees to the UN Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.

After the welcome session, Steve Kenzie began the main event with a presentation on What are the SDGs? He gave a brief account of how the Goals came into being and an overview of the Goals. He then did a deep dive into Goal 2 to demonstrate the importance of looking at the targets that underpin the Goals to understand their scope and richness. Steve Kenzie’s slides are available here.

The next session, Why should businesses in Scotland care about the Goals? was presented by Jim McColl OBE, CEO & Chairman, Clyde Blowers Capital. Jim spoke about the outstanding work his company is doing to provide educational opportunities for young people that are at risk of disengaging from formal education. Newland Junior College represents a significant contribution to SDG 4 in Glasgow, with knock on benefits for Goals 1, 8, 9, 10, and 17.

After a short break, the programme resumed with a panel discussion, What opportunities do the Goals offer? How can business get involved? moderated by Dr Alec Wersun. The panellists were:

  • Thom Kenrick, Sustainable Banking Team, Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Jim McColl OBE, CEO & Chairman, Clyde Blowers Capital
  • Duncan Booker, Chief Resilience Officer, Glasgow City Council
  • Alastair Davis, CEO, Social Investment Scotland
  • Alison McRae, Senior Director, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce
  • Cam Donaldson, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research, Glasgow Caledonian University

The panellists introduced themselves and spoke about their engagement with the Sustainable Development Goals. A more detailed summary of the discussions will be uploaded here in the coming days.

To conclude, Steve Kenzie thanked the speakers and attendees, urging them to wear their SDG pins proudly and help raise awareness of the Global Goals. Dr Alec Wersun brought the event to a close, again thanking the speakers and attendees.

Further resources:

  • Read a news report from Glasgow Caledonian University here.
  • Download a .pdf 2-pager listing all the SDG targets here.
  • See short films from Project Everyone about the Global Goals here.
  • More details on the Global Goals can be found here.

For further information please contact the UN Global Compact Network UK Network Secretariat: secretariat@unglobalcompact.org.uk

This SDG Roadshow event was supported by: