SDG Impact Standards, Assurance & Seal 02

Targeting the gap between high level principles and impact performance reporting.

SDG Impact Standards

The SDG Impact Standards are voluntary internal management standards designed to guide businesses and investors embed sustainability and the SDG into their management systems and decision-making practices. Learn more.

Click through to the Japanese language version of the SDG Impact website here.

OECD-UNDP Impact Standards for Financing Sustainable Development

UNDP SDG Impact collaborated with OECD on developing the Impact Standards for Financing Sustainable Development (IS-FSD). The Standards are designed to support donors in the deployment of public resources through development finance institutions (DFIs) and private asset managers, in a way that maximises the positive contribution towards the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Independent Assurance & Seal

Independent assurance against the SDG Impact Standards will be encouraged and SDG Impact is working with stakeholders to develop an accreditation system for independent practice assurers. An SDG Impact Seal and associated governance is being developed. Issuers of SDG Bonds, Private Equity Fund Managers and Enterprises will be able to apply based on independent assurance of practice to a pre-determined level to qualify.

Education and Training courses have been designed to further the adoption of the SDG Impact Standards

Education and Training 03

CASE at Duke University – UNDP Impact Measurement and Management for the SDGs Course

The Impact Measurement and Management for the SDGs is a free on-line course available on the Coursera platform, and is the step to understanding the SDG Impact Standards.

Produced by the award winning team at CASE at Duke University, and developed in collaboration with the UNDP SDG Impact team and advisors from around the world, this course consolidates several decades of work around impact management into a cutting-edge guide based on short videos and lessons with concrete practical examples.

The course emphasizes ways to improve decision-making for impact on SDGs through changes enterprises and investors can make in strategy, management approach, transparency, and governance, which align with the UNDP’s SDG Impact Standards.

SDG Impact provides customised advisory services for private sector decision makers and public sector policymakers.

SDG Impact Standards User and Assurer Training

UNDP is partnering with Social Value International to co-create and deliver high quality “train-the-trainer” programs and training materials on the SDG Impact Standards to develop the network of trainers to train standards users and assurers. The objectives of the partnership are threefold:

• To train and accredit a global network of trainers who can then train current and potential users, assurers and related parties on the SDG Impact Standards
• To drive awareness and adoption of the SDG Impact Standards by broadening reach through UNDP’s global network as well as external network operators
• To create a culture and shared language and approach for integrating impact management, sustainability and the SDGs into management decision-making in the private sector in line with the SDG Impact Standards.

UNDP, as developer and owner of the SDG Impact Standards, and SVI, as an established impact management and social value accounting training provider and network operator, bring complementary capabilities and a shared goal to drive convergence and a common language and approach for integrating sustainability and the SDGs into private sector management decision making.

The train-the-trainer business model and objectives of the partnership support both organizations’ aims to develop a community of individuals who can deliver high quality and consistent training to the market that helps to drive change at the system level by building system capacity and capability and empowering others..

The train-the-trainer program was initially delivered by SVI and SDG Impact team members with the goal of developing a network of accredited trainers (both internal and external to UNDP) around the world who can deliver high quality and consistent user training on the SDG Impact Standards and training to prepare potential assurers to deliver assurance engagements in a consistent way. This may be expanded to include local market partners in the future to enable and facilitate delivery of train-the-trainer programs in local languages and with local market context.

The development phase of the train-the-trainer program is being piloted.

SDG Impact continues to work in partnership with SVI in a number of different ways. Technically, the SVI Standards for applying the Principles of Social Value were instrumental in the development of the SDG Impact Standards. As well as being influenced by SVI's work, the emergence of the SDG Impact Standards has helped SVI to evolve their own Standards including the introduction of an 8th Principle (Be Responsive) and defining a more explicit purpose around optimising wellbeing in order to support sustainable development. Our technical collaboration is accelerating convergence of Impact Measurement and Management Standards.

SDG Impact has also partnered with SVI utilising their vast network of IMM practitioners and their experience delivering training and accrediting individuals. Together we are strong advocates for assurance, and we will be collaborating further to scale training and roll out the assurance model for the SDG Impact Standards.