Both the academic and the private sector have a great responsibility towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the UN 2030 Agenda. In addition to various content-related objectives, including grand environmental and social issues, the SDGs also focus on the process level of societal change towards sustainability. Of particular interest is how individuals and collective groups are involved in the decision-making process, and how they interact and cooperate with one another.

Building upon the conceptual considerations of the “UN PRME Blueprint for SDG integration”, the aim of the project is to implement the Blueprint in practice by assisting the initiation and operation of academia-private sector partnerships especially in emerging countries, and develop a digital platform to facilitate further partnerships. In doing so, the collaborative multi-stakeholder project joins together sustainability-oriented higher education institutions who are actively involved in promoting the UN Agenda 2030 and its SDGs, with likeminded private sector organisations. The goal of the partnerships is to mobilise and share specialist knowledge, technology and financial resources to realise the achievement of the SDGs in the countries involved.

The scientifically sound and practice-oriented content of the digital platform will be developed as a bottom-up initiative. The platform will serve as a guideline and source for inspiration for academic institutions and private sector organisations to follow to facilitate SDG-related partnerships and dialogue. The main grounds of the digital platform will address how can sustained SDG-related partnerships be initiated and grow, and what is needed to promote the SDGs themselves in a participatory manner.

• Gustavo A. Yepes Lopez, Universidad Externado de Colombia, Colombia
• Jill Bogie, Gordon Institute of Business Science, South Africa
• Noha El-Bassiouny, German University in Cairo, Egypt
• Gordon Abekah-Nkrumah, University of Ghana Business School, Ghana
• Kutlwano Ramaboa, University of Cape Town, South Africa
• Sandro Alberto Sánchez Paredes, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Peru