“Reinvigorating Inclusive Multilateralism: Business Town Hall”

The 76th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 76): “Reinvigorating Inclusive Multilateralism: Business Town Hall” took place on September 20th from 1 - 2:30 pm EST. This event brought together industry leaders to discuss routes to achieve the global sustainability agenda, including international cooperation and encouraging the private sector to align with global business and provide solutions using inclusive multilateralism. Speakers also raised questions about the resilience of the United Nations and values of democracy, rule of law, inclusive societies, and the treatment of workers. 

This event, which was organized by the United States Council for International Business (USCIB), Business at OECD (BIAC) and the International Organization of Employers (IOE), was extremely successful in stimulating innovative and productive conversations about the future of government and policy changes surrounding climate change, Covid-19, and multilateralism. USCIB’s Norine Kennedy moderated a thoughtful conversation with Robin Oglivy, the Special Representative and Permanent Observer of OECD to the UN, and Ester Baiget, the CEO of Novozymes and USCIB Trustee Sustainability Champion, who pointed out an unsettling and rather large gap between words and actions regarding policy targeted toward environmental justice. 

The event also highlighted the responsibility companies, citizens, and the government hold, not only to shareholders, but to our communities, future generations, and the planet we live on. Government, businesses, and citizens all have key parts to play in reaching global net-zero goals, reducing mental health related to climate change, achieving and incentivising sustainability, and working toward a cleaner future.

This session included a series of “Fireside Chats,” which featured three priority topics, determined by the General Assembly. USCIB’s Brian Lowry moderated a discussion of climate change which featured Michele Parmelee, the president of the IOE and Deputy CEO and Chief People & Purpose Officer of Deloitte. 

This interdisciplinary discussion also included the topics of human rights and pandemic response and recovery, featuring guest speakers such as USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson, Microsoft Vice President of UN Affairs John Frank, and Dr. Scott Ratzan, the Executive Director of Business Partners for Sustainable Development. These moderated discussions, including esteemed industry leaders and scholars, facilitated conversations about business engagement and innovation in conjunction with this overarching theme of multilateralism and how to promote it.

Airbnb to Provide 20,000 Refugees with Free Housing

Property rental company, Airbnb, and its charitable arm, Airbnb.org, have announced their intention to provide 20,000 Afghan refugees across the globe with free, temporary housing. Airbnb has maintained a multi-year partnership with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and has historically worked with HIAS and the Church World Service to aid refugees. At the time of Airbnb’s August 24 announcement, the company had already provided emergency funding to the IRC to support up to 1,000 Afghan refugees and worked with other, unspecified, partners to place an additional 165 Afghan refugees in safe housing.

Airbnb’s refugee housing effort will be entirely funded by Airbnb, CEO Brian Chesky, and donations through Airbnb.org’s Refugee Fund, a $25 million fund that was established prior to World Refugee Day this past June. Airbnb co-founder, Joe Gebbia, referred to the company’s decision as an “easy call” and the company is urging other global businesses to join Airbnb in providing Afghan refugees with immediate aid. Gebbia also emphasized that Airbnb is utilizing the expertise of the IRC, Church World Service, and HIAS to ensure that the provided housing is truly safe and accessible.

While Airbnb has not specified the length of the temporary housing, the company has released that individual hosts have offered both short- and long-term stays. Currently, the company is allowing anyone, not just current hosts, to sign up to host refugees at a free or discounted rate in order to maximize placement possibilities. This is a broad expansion of a program already run by Airbnb that has provided approximately 25,000 refugees with temporary housing across the past four years.

To become a host or donate to the Airbnb Refugee Fund, click here.

To read Airbnb’s official announcement, click here.

UNCTAD’S World Investment Report: Overview and Highlights

UNCTAD’S World Investment Report: Overview and Highlights

UNCTAD has released a new UN World Investment Report which monitors global and regional foreign direct investment (FDI) trends and documents recent national and international investment policy developments. This year’s report considers the COVID-19 crisis which has negatively impacted global flows of FDIs. It also includes a new chapter, added at the request of the UN General Assembly, on investment in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Chapter V of the report reviews the investment in SDGs, with an assessment of progress made on mobilizing and channeling investment  during the first 5 years after the adoption of the SDGs. Progress on investment in the SDGs can be found across 6 of the 10 SDG investment sectors which are infrastructure; climate change; mitigation; food and agriculture; health; telecommunication; and ecosystems and biodiversity. While progress on investment grows, sustainability funds have grown rapidly  in number, variety and size. According to the report, “UNCTAD estimates that funds dedicated to investment in sustainable development have reached $1.2 - $1.3 trillion today.” Most of these funds, however, are invested in developed countries (e.g. in renewable energy).

UNCTAD groups the variety of sustainable investments into two groups according to their contributions to sustainable development: sustainability-dedicated investment and responsible investment. Sustainability-dedicated investment refers to investment funds targeting SDG-related themes. UNCTAD estimates that sustainability-dedicated investment today could be in the range of $1.2-1.3 trillion, as mentioned earlier. Responsible investment refers to general investment funds that behave responsibly in their investing strategies and operations. This type of investment is expected to be conducted in a sustainable-development-responsible manner, but it does not directly target environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and SDG-related areas. The total amount of such funds is estimated to be around $29 trillion.

The report also mentions that more than 150 countries have adopted national strategies on sustainable development or corrected their existing development plans to reflect the SDGs. An analysis by UNCTAD shows that although many of these strategies highlight the need for additional financial resources, very few have solid road maps for the promotion of investment in the SDGs. The report states that a more systematic approach is needed for mainstreaming SDGs into national investment policy frameworks and the IIA (International Investment Agreement) regime.

Lastly, UNCTAD believes a new set of transformative global actions to a facilitate a “Big Push” in private sector investment in the SDGs is urgently needed. As a result, their new Action Plan combines several policy instruments to provide an implementation framework for investing in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The plan presents a range of policy options to respond to  investment mobilization, which can be found in the report.

Aside from information related to SDGs, the report discusses how the COVID-19 crisis will cause a dramatic downfall in FDI in 2020 and 2021. Some interesting findings include a forecast that shows Global FDI flows are expected to decrease by up to 40% in 2020. The report also reviews findings on the immediate effects of the pandemic on FDI. A short-term impact includes tightening margins for reinvestment and new investment restrictions, while more medium-term and long-term effects of the pandemic include navigating a global economic recession and fostering supply chain resilience, respectively. Despite the decline in global FDI flows during the crisis, the international production system will continue to play a vital role in economic growth and development as the global FDI stock stands at $36 trillion today. The report states that the system, however, is entering a decade of transformation that will provide both opportunities and challenges for investment and development policymakers.

To read the full report in detail, please click here.