(return to Sustainable Development Goals description page)
Evaluate your product or service through the lens of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. If you’re not working on your own project / product, choose a consumer product you are interested in and would like to research. If you don’t have an idea of a product, you can use the Fairphone. (www.fairphone.com/en/impact).
STEP 1: FAMILIARISE YOURSELF WITH THE SDGS AND THEIR TARGETS
TIME ESTIMATE: 15-30 MINUTES
Read the short descriptions of all 17 Sustainable Development Goals on the SDG Compass website, https://sdgcompass.org. (For any SDGs that are unclear, or you want more info on, read the sections “the role of business” and “Key business themes addressed by this SDG”.)
For SDGs that you find particularly relevant to your product or service, read the section “the SDG targets.” This provides more concrete actionable goals. For example, one of the targets for the “life below water” SDG is 14.5, “By 2020, conserve at least 10 percent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on best available scientific information.
STEP 2: TAG YOUR PRODUCT’S POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE IMPACTS ON SDGS
TIME ESTIMATE: 30-60 MINUTES
Use the diagram below or make your own map of where your product, accompanying services, and related aspects of your company either benefit SDGs to accelerate progress toward the goals, or hurt SDGs by impeding progress or causing social / environmental damage. Don’t include all SDGs, just the ones most relevant to the impacts your product or service has on the world.
Include considerations like:
- Which SDG are most relevant and important to your product, product category, and industry?
- What SDGs are relevant to each lifecycle stage? If you’re designing a service or software, not a product, remember the physical hardware your software / service uses and the energy that requires, including communications bandwidth. Also remember related physical products (e.g., if you’re making an online fashion store, include impacts of the clothes sold).
- Which SDGs and targets are currently being hurt? Are there opportunities to mitigate your product or company’s negative impacts?
- Which SDGs and targets are currently being helped? Are there ways to increase your positive impact?
- Which SDGs and targets are not addressed but should be? Is there a way to start addressing them? For details of your product or service you need but don’t know, research to find them. For example, look at:
- The claims / data your company publishes online or in reports.
- Industry reports on typical details for similar companies.
- Reports or scores by watchdog groups (e.g. Global Witness, Greenpeace, Ethos ESG).
- Other reports on the product, product category, or industry.Note what details you found, with references to the sources.
STEP 3: SET GOALS FOR IMPROVEMENT
TIME ESTIMATE: 10-20 MINUTES
Based on the map or list you just made, choose your top 1-2 opportunities for improvement, and set improvement goals.Include considerations like:
- Why did you choose this area to focus on? (Maximising already-positive impacts, mitigating negative impacts, or other?)
- What indicators and metrics should we use to drive improvements? Refer to relevant targets in the SDG Compass website’s “the SDG targets” section for that SDG.
- What’s the current baseline score of that indicator/metric, for your product and for the industry?
- What’s a good target for improvement in that indicator/metric? Is there a short term and longer term Target?
STEP 4: CREATE AN ACTION PLAN
TIME ESTIMATE: 10-30 MINUTES
Based on the improvement goals you’ve set, how would you go about reaching those goals?
Include considerations like:
- What aspects of the business need to be involved in this change? (E.g., material suppliers, clients, your managing executives, etc.) How to enrol them?
Are there systemic changes needed outside your company? (E.g., government regulations, social norms, etc.) How can your product / company / team contribute to those larger changes? Are there existing efforts in this area to support?
- Are there partnerships to pursue? With others in your industry? With experts? With environmental or social groups? With governments?
STEP 5: SUMMARISE YOUR FINDINGS & YOUR PLAN
TIME ESTIMATE: 15-30 MINUTES
Use the following table to summarise your work. If you choose more than one SDG to work on, make additional columns to list each SDG in its own column.
HOW TO APPLY:
TO SCORE YOUR SUCCESS ON THIS EXERCISE, SEE IF YOU…
- Created a map or list of your product’s positive and negative impact on the SDGs, over your product’s lifecycle. (For digital / services, include energy use & related physical things.)
- Did additional research, as needed, to understand your product or industry’s impacts on the SDGs. Cited sources for findings.
- Choose goals, metrics, and targets for improvements using clear and appropriate criteria.
- Articulate a basic plan to work towards your goals and targets.
- Summarise your findings and plan in a quick reference table.