By Jannelieke Aalstein

Last week I attended the SDG Action Day on behalf of Issuemakers, organized by VNO NCW West. VNO NCW is in transition to change its course; tensions in our society increasingly affect entrepreneurs and they want to take their role where possible. They see the inequality of opportunity (e.g. between their own employees) increasing further, experience that the increased prosperity only reaches a small part of the people and jointly conclude that sustainability is not happening fast enough in many areas. Entrepreneurship for broad prosperity has therefore been made a joint ambition and during the meeting last week we gathered with approximately 100 entrepreneurs to discuss this further. The government cannot do it alone; who will step in and take their role?

Of course, there are currently entrepreneurs who are having a hard enough time themselves. But other entrepreneurs do have the space to step up their game. However, for many, the question is: how do I start? What can I do? During the meeting we talked about first steps, “small” things you can start with and how you can slowly build from there. To do this convincingly, it is important to look at your own mission and vision and match it with one or more SDGs that really suit your organization. You can then see which issues fall within that theme that you can work on. Be sure to involve your colleagues! What can and do they want to do? What good ideas arise at the lunch table? How can you start?

An interesting afternoon, great conversations and some good ideas gained! Do you also want to make an impact with your organization that goes beyond your own product or service? And could you use some help or advice with that? Nice if you call us; we are happy to support!