Environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have been investigated by scholars from several points of view. Although the epidemic of COVID-19 is recent, numerous scholars have analyzed its effects on ESG, making it difficult to systematize current knowledge. This generates the risk that the discussion will become stale. This study aims to provide a systematic literature review able to examine the combination of ESG and COVID-19 outbreak, to understand what the academics discovered. Eighty-five studies were systematically reviewed. We used a systematic literature review which is the tool that can ensure that all relevant data from the topic under investigation are considered. This approach is considered as the most comprehensive and rigorous one because it allows the creation of the advancement of knowledge of the specific topic. We identified five classes plus a residual one that accommodate the main topics analyzed in the literature (investment and stock returns, ESG in specific industries, ESG rating, gender studies, ESG reporting, and other). Our research highlights that most of the studies have been focused on the first three topics, sometimes reaching different or opposite findings, while only few studies have been dedicated on the other topics. Therefore, we state the need for more research into the ESG/COVID-19 combination in the fields of gender diversity and ESG reporting, and for more research able to understand the different findings of the other three identified topics.

The topic of sustainable development has become increasingly central to the international community. In 2015, the UN approved the 2030 Agenda, an action plan aimed at pursuing sustainable development. The founding elements of the 2030 Agenda are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) that refer to different areas of development. The objective of this study is to determine the state of implementation of the SDGs in Italy and to understand to what extent the country will be able to reach European standards in 2030 under current policies. To this end, a quantitative analysis was carried out which, thanks to the use of official statistics and the FORECAST.ETS function, made it possible to identify the value that the indicators will have in 2030. In addition, the dynamic index methodology was applied to measure the degree of implementation of the SDGs between two different historical periods: 2018 and 2030. The analyses carried out shows that Italy needs to take urgent measures to meet its commitment to the 2030 Agenda. The study offers one of the first insights into the implementation of the 2030 Agenda as, in addition to analyzing the country’s performance, it examines the pursuit of the SDGs within the country itself. It is therefore believed that the results may be of interest to governments, experts, and academics.

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