Projection of SDGs in Codes of Ethics—Case Study about Lost in Translation

Abstract

The United Nations’ (UN) drive for sustainability culminates in a recent milestone document, Agenda 2030, which sets forth 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Arguably, these SDGs inspire governments more than they do individual businesses and their embracement and measurement at the business level faces a myriad of shortcomings. A case study of internal declaratory documents about sustainability and other ethical commitments, such as codes of ethics, represents a feasible platform to collect fresh and inside primary data about the projection of SDGs in these codes of ethics, and ultimately in the strategy and daily operations of involved businesses. The representativeness of the sample of 30 businesses is ensured by the size of these businesses, their inter-related nature, and significance in the EU. A holistic approach, along with meta-analysis, comparison, and a combination of automatic keyword-based content analysis and of a manual simplified Delphi-method, allows for the addressing of both underlying burning questions—(i) how SDGs are projected in these codes of ethics and (ii) why not in a perfect manner. The main five findings point out the deep conceptual misunderstandings and shortcomings by businesses, which do not properly work with their codes of ethics, and which could take at least partially the SDG’s guidance. These rather pioneering propositions are not conclusive, due to the inherent and inevitable limitations of the performed case study, and need to be verified over time (longitudinally), while expanding the pool of studied codes of ethics.

CSR Statements in International and Czech Luxury Fashion Industry at the Onset and during the COVID-19 Pandemic—Slowing Down the Fast Fashion Business?

“…First, all international luxury fashion businesses have been, and continue, paying particular attention to environmental and employee matters CSR categories and their statements have declaratory active features [4], while national Czech luxury fashion businesses are not really interested in these two and even not in other CSR categories, with the exception of Alpine Pro, Moira, and Timo. In full compliance with that, the concept of circular premium is much more developed on the international level than on the national level [33].…”

“…In the 1960s, the trend was magnified by the reinforced interest in socially progressive values, along with political awareness, under the auspices of "communitarism". In the 1970s, this was transformed into an individualist focus due to a myriad of world and regional crises and a move from Keynesian economic theory to neoliberal theory [4]. The UN closely followed this evolution and brought a set of important global sustainability documents.…”

“…Since the concept of sustainability and CSR are critical at the global, regional, and even national levels, they were incorporated in EU strategic priorities for 2010-2020, that is, in the Europe 2020: A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth (Europe 2020) [14], in particular in the Green Paper: Promoting a European Framework for CSR [15]. Indeed, the EU repeatedly expressed its commitment to the UN Agenda, its determination to reach all 17 SDGs by 2030, and its desire to even engage businesses, investors, and consumers (see e.g., the updated Directive 2013/34/EU) [4]. The EU expects CSR to be a transparent dialogue and interaction between businesses and other stakeholders.…”

The integration of corporate social responsibility and marketing concepts as a business strategy: evidence from SEM-based multivariate and Toda-Yamamoto causality models

“…The CSR has arisen as an imperative theoretical concept and as a feature on the campaigns of every type of organization, particularly conglomerates and transnational companies. Yet, there is a consistent scholastic discussion amid CSR as a notion that there is no single definition of CSR, which could be accepted universally in a distinctive situation (Balcerzak & MacGregor Pelikánová, 2020). However, large organizations have developed a corporate basis for establishing vital business strategies, and the business world has been applying the concept of CSR without going into the constant definition.…”

A Comment on the Ethics Statements of Global Non-Governmental Organizations and their Relation to Sustainable Development Goals

“…I shall confine the focus of my paper to NGOs' ethical commitments as they pertain to the implementation of SDGs, similarly to a previous study on businesses (Balcerzak & Pelikánová, 2020). This, I suggest may be expressed in the humanitarian-development intersections of their engagement in meeting the immediate basic needs of people (e.g., for clean air, clean water, food supply, clothing, health, and shelter) and by action (humanitarian or developmental), which is part and parcel of sustainability development strategy and its implementation.…”