Ecopreneur.eu has been established to actively implement and support the transition towards a sustainable economy, fair and just society and clean and healthy environment. A green economy results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities. The goal is to create an equal and prosperous society. Green Economy thereby is a central way for implementing sustainability and for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations in 2015, covering social and economic development issues including environment, education, climate change, poverty, hunger, health, gender equality, water, sanitation, energy, urbanisation, and social justice.
Sustainable companies in our network all across Europe have embedded and are striving to achieve the SDGs. Yet, more businesses need to grasp the SDGs, make conscious commitments and eventually implement and scale them.
Ecopreneur.eu commits to work on SDGs and Agenda 2030 in close cooperation with our members. We work to rise the ambitious of EU policies, improve the market conditions for sustainable businesses and expand the awareness and concrete actions of green businesses and companies on the SDGs.
For an Ecopreneur.eu paper: What is needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals? click here.
For a project of our German member UnternehmensGrün on how to implement the SDGs in SMEs click here.
Businesses that fully commit to being as sustainable as possible are known to be more resilient to market changes and are creating and have access to new markets. New innovations are driven by sustainability, new talents are attracted.
Still, many businesses do not see SDGs as a strategic part of their core business. Measure progress against SDGs for internal and external accountability. Sustainabilty knowledge is still not common in (higher) education, a key featuer to bringing forward sustainable development.
Ecopreneur.eu promotes ambitious action from all EU countries and aligns the green businesses in Europe with the climate movement, through:
- Amendments to Directives and national laws with impact on climate change.
- Articles, letters and press releases to raise awareness and call to action.
- Support and communication of relevant initiatives from civil society and green businesses.
- Communication of green business solutions that tackle challenges related to climate change.
- Partnerships with other organizations that share same values and concerns.
In their daily business life, green start-ups in Europe face an array of problems and obstacles:
- financial and bureaucratic problems,
- market problems,
- insufficient business models,
- lack of political support,
- political frameworks needed,
- distorted market conditions,
- consumer awareness.