Advancing Responsible Leadership in Education & Beyond

In 2015, the global community adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with a target year of 2030. However, we have stalled or gone into reverse on some 37 percent of the global goals. There is an urgent need to get the goals back on track or we risk irreparable harm to global progress.

Given that the private sector is one of the key drivers in global development, engagement with businesses is crucial to accelerate action on the SDGs. However, 96% of chief academic officers believe that they are preparing young people well for the workforce, while only 41% of university students and 11% of business leaders share that same view. The data show there is a great mismatch, and the immense need for more engagement/discussions among all stakeholders to ensure young people are ready to lead in the world of work and respond to the 2030 crisis.

The UN Global Compact is the principle UN entity overseeing private sector engagement in achieving the SDGs and beyond, and UNGC’s education initiative, the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), leads efforts in preparing future leaders for responsible leadership.

Accordingly, the World Economic Forum mobilizes stakeholders from around the world to discuss and to take action on important challenges and opportunities to ensure a sustainable future for all. To capitalize on the important occasion, PRME will hold an in-person side-event entitled “Accelerating Responsible Leadership in Education and Beyond” gathering key partners from PRME’s community - in particular from the private sector - as well as stakeholders from various disciplines to discuss the importance of responsible leadership education and how we - as global citizens - can join together to integrate responsible leadership throughout society. Invitees include private sector representatives, governments, individuals/families with unique access to action, civil society, young people, academia, researchers, UN officials, and more.

The objective of the side event is to highlight key developments/good practices as well as serve as a forum for discussion and collaboration towards action.