But let's take a small step back and understand what we mean when we use this term (sustainability), which is increasingly used today. In environmental and economic sciences, sustainability means an approach that aims to meet the needs and requirements of current generations without compromising the needs and requirements of future generations.
What is social sustainability?
For years we have been drawn to and focused on the problem of environmental sustainability, undoubtedly very important, and economic, thus neglecting social sustainability, which over time has learned to be the most decisive of the three. In fact, in the absence of equality and solid and effective social cohesion, the other two dimensions of sustainability cannot be realized, but let us now understand in detail what is meant by social sustainability.
Social sustainability is the set of actions aimed at achieving social equality through the elimination of poverty and the creation of decent living conditions for each individual on earth, specifically, social sustainability has the objective of guaranteeing a social context , environmental and cultural within which you can express your being freely. Furthermore, this decline in sustainability aims to reinforce social cohesion and protect minorities who often suffer injustices in terms of rights and freedom of expression of their traditions and habits, obviously as long as these do not conflict with laws and current regulations. Finally, the key issue of social sustainability in the 2030 Agenda is that of generational disparity, which means that young people will not have the same opportunities as their parents and therefore of past generations.
Today the clear reference to social sustainability is found, as mentioned at the beginning of this article, in the 2030 Agenda, but in the last century the principles of social sustainability were enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the international context. , on the other hand, in the context, Italian national social sustainability has been highlighted in the Italian Constitution.
Social sustainability: the difference with environmental and economic sustainability
The integration of the three dimensions of sustainability has officially found a voice in the 2030 Agenda, but already in 2011 in Gothenburg, the European Union Strategy for Sustainable Development had foreseen concrete measures affecting the three dimensions of sustainable development ( environmental, economic and social).
Let's take a closer look at the difference between these three dimensions of sustainability, specifically in this paragraph we will talk about sustainable environmental and economic development.
What do we mean when we talk about environmental sustainability? With this term we want to indicate the commitment and objective of safeguarding the entire planet and its (unfortunately) limited resources by putting limits on man's actions, which often, but not always, cause significant and irreversible damage with his activities. Fortunately, environmental sustainability has found substantial attention around the world, in fact, it has become, and probably still does, awareness that the scarcity of the Earth's resources affects the search for species, since our Planet already will not be able. provide basic and life-support functions. Therefore, among the objectives of the 2030 Agenda we find: guaranteeing access for all to economic, reliable, sustainable and modern energy systems, promoting actions to combat climate change, conserving oceans, seas and marine resources, for sustainable development, protect, restore and promote the sustainable use of the terrestrial ecosystem. Therefore we can say that the difference between environmental sustainability and social sustainability consists of what they protect, environmental sustainability has as its main interest the environment, the Earth and its integrity, on the contrary, social sustainability focuses on the individual and the creation. of decent living conditions.
Economic sustainability consists of the capacity of an economic system to develop constant growth of the two main indicators, that is, generate income and work. In fact, economics has as a basic principle that constant and continuous growth, stagnation, underdevelopment, are not considered in accordance with the economic system and, consequently, with the survival of man. Economic sustainability is widely discussed in the 2030 Agenda, especially in the eighth goal which aims to promote lasting, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all people on earth, no one excluded. In this case, social and economic sustainability focuses on the individual,
The social sustainability objectives of a company
The 2030 Agenda is clear: all countries must commit to achieving the 17 sustainable development goals. In recent years, State actions have been carried out mainly by companies committed to the implementation of sustainability and corporate well-being projects.
Corporate well-being refers to a set of non-monetary actions that companies can implement to ensure a certain level of well-being for all employees. It has been understood that behind the logic of business well-being there is actually a deep economic interest, that is, to have human resources and a convinced, satisfied workforce that therefore pursues business objectives, it is necessary to guarantee them the precisely anticipated benefits. in the well-being model.
Therefore, it is important to say that, to date, social sustainability is of fundamental importance for companies because it is also a necessity for business development. This was also confirmed in 2011 by the European Commission, which had stated that for companies a strategic approach to social sustainability is essential for their competitiveness in the market because it can bring several benefits.
Given all this, what are the social sustainability objectives that are taken into account in a company? Let's see the most common ones below:
- creating a healthy and functional business climate
- satisfied employees with the objective of improving business turnover and attracting new talent
- greater stakeholder participation
- better relationship with customers
- improving brand image and brand reputation
- development of better external relations based on mutual satisfaction of needs
- elimination of gender inequalities, ensuring equal treatment for all.
Companies that integrate social sustainability have significant effects in terms of increasing the company's reputation with the consequent improvement of the climate.
In the following paragraph we report some interesting examples to better understand what we are talking about.
Examples of social sustainability
Below we want to report some examples of companies that have implemented actions and initiatives regarding social responsibility, specifically we will talk about the following cases:
- Lavazza Foundation in collaboration with Save the Children is committed to providing and creating jobs for the youth of Kolkata living in slums and disreputable neighborhoods. In this way, the young people who are part of the project can learn the barista trade and fit into a work context that helps them escape the difficult conditions of their neighborhood.
- Since 2018, Amazon has undertaken a project aimed at women with the “Amazon Women in Innovation” project, the objective is to support some young women to participate in some of the most prestigious Italian universities by offering a loan of €6.000 for three years. The objective of the project is to reduce, until its elimination, the gender gap, which is still very present in our society and to offer women from disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity to make their dreams and ambitions come true.
- With the “Warmly Moncler” project, Moncler supports residents living in the coldest areas of the world by sending medicines and blankets to children and their families to protect themselves from the harsh and cold temperatures.
In short, there are many activities that a company can include to develop social sustainability actions. Obviously, social sustainability actions must also be addressed within the company to improve the conditions of employees and, consequently, the performance of the company itself.
Do your part and become the sustainable company the world needs!
