Working for peace and justice as an entrepreneur
Author: Daniele Pistelli
Estimated reading time: 7 min
Introduction
Following the list of the SDGs, the Sixteenth goal is to “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”. (1)
SDG 16 aims to build strong institutions in support of peaceful and inclusive societies by:
- promoting the rule of law, transparency, accountability, good governance, and non-discrimination at all levels of government
- ensuring equal access to justice for all and protecting everyone’s fundamental freedoms
- significantly reducing violent deaths, torture, abuse, exploitation, discrimination, human trafficking, corruption, and organised crime
- significantly reducing all forms of violence and promoting peace. (2)
It is also necessary to understand that there are links between the environment and the protection of fundamental freedoms so that it’s possible to effectively prevent conflicts, create reconstruction programs after the conflicts and promote peaceful and inclusive societies. (3)
In the last 60 years, about 40% of conflicts were linked to natural resources which then resulted in re-conflicting with a much higher rate compared to other types of disputes. (3)
Peace and Justice in developing countries
Developing countries suffer from problems such as corruption, bribery, theft, and tax evasion, losing about 1.1 trillion euros per year, an amount that could be invested in societies to keep the world’s poorest from extreme poverty for at least six years. (2)
Other urgent problems comprehend:
- the lack of birth certificates in southern Africa, where almost half of the citizens do not have one,
- the lack of justice in these countries, where a third of all prisoners are held in detention without conviction,
- the lack of protection of the fundamental freedoms of many individuals that increases the standards of exclusion and discrimination
- the violations of the children’s rights that continue to plague various countries. (2)
The numbers of this problem
Currently, the pandemic is intensifying the risk of exploitation of children including traffic and child labour, in 2018 1 of every 3 traffic victims were children. In 2020 child labour increased to 160 million, inverting the trend of the last two decades. (1)
In 2020, the deaths of 331 human rights defenders were reported in 32 different countries, an increase of 18% over the previous year. (1)
In 2020, still, only 82 countries have independent national human rights institutions that comply with international standards. (1)
Additionally, the problem of bribery has a much higher effect on low-income countries than high-income countries, 37.6% compared to 7.2%, (1)
Democracy Game
Visit this website you will find the game of democracy, which you can play with your friends and colleagues so you can experience what it means to work and take decisions together. (4)
How can companies help the achievement of SDG 16?
Identify and take robust action against corruption and violence in own operations and the supply chain
Each company can contribute to the promotion of peace and justice by developing, implementing, and sharing strong and effective measures against corruption and violence in its operations. (6)
Work with governments to strengthen institutions and increase respect and support for the rule of law
Following frequent consultations with governments and civil society, companies can become leaders in increasing respect and support for the rule of law and build stronger, accountable and inclusive institutions that govern workplaces, markets and the communities. Companies can use their resources to strengthen government efforts. (6)
Work with governments and/or international institutions in areas of conflict and humanitarian crises to contribute to peace and institution building
Companies that are located in conflict areas during humanitarian crises need to be responsible, respecting and supporting human rights in their operations, while also appealing to international institutions and the embassy of the country of origin if they have evidence that a certain state is involved in crimes against humanity. (6)
Companies to take inspiration from
If you are looking for some inspiration, here is a list of companies that make a difference with their sustainable initiative towards the achievement of SDG 16.
Cobwebs Technologies
This American startup develops solutions that monitor potential criminal or terrorist groups in social media. They developed a WEBNIT platform called Trapdoor, which collects information from various sources like social media and the dark web, gaining intelligence from the big data to assist with investigations against criminal organizations. (7)
Choco4Peace
Choco4Peace helps Colombian farmers to connect with markets, investors, and socio-economic services using blockchain technology. This allows investors to know the exact origin and production of the cocoa and chocolate so that farmers are rewarded fairly. (7)
The startup’s work also promotes other SDGs, including SDG 8 Decent Work & Economic Growth and SDG 12 Responsible Consumption & Production. (7)
Visual Contracts
This Dutch startup has created a platform to help close legal knowledge gaps for marginalized communities and small businesses. They offer a platform that creates easy-to-understand legal contracts that allow people to make autonomous decisions, without needing the help of lawyers or attorneys. The startup formulates visual contracts that incorporate visual elements and layouts, making them easy to understand. (7)
Isgood.ai
Governments, nonprofits, and social impact startups offer many initiatives fostering peace and justice. However, there is not a clear way to measure their effectiveness.
This Australian-based startup provides technological solutions to optimize and measure social impact. The startup uses artificial intelligence to reveal complex patterns of cause-effect in social or humanitarian environments. The startup’s solutions enable organizations to drive change using the data offered. (7)
Eirene
This Spanish-based startup provides data on regions that are suffering from socio-economic and political conflicts, through a secure and anonymous mobile application so people that offer the data don’t fear being recognized. The startup assesses risk factors such as food prices, illegal mining, and incidences of violence to facilitate decision-making to create new initiatives to fight these issues. (7)
Actions you can take in your daily life to achieve SDG 16
To achieve the objectives of SDG 16, each one of us needs to take action. In addition to companies, organizations, and governments, we should contribute in our personal lives to help achieve the goal.
Here is a list of things everyone can do to play a part in the achievement of SDG 16 as suggested by the United Nations. (5)
- Reduce violence everywhere
- Protect children from abuse, exploitation, trafficking and violence
- Promote the rule of law and ensure equal access to justice
- Combat organized crime and illicit financial and arms flow
- Substantially reduce corruption and bribery
- Develop effective, accountable, and transparent institutions
- Ensure responsive, inclusive, and representative decision-making
- Strengthen the participation in global governance
- Provide universal legal identity
- Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms
GründerAtelier’s Impact Accelerator
This was the sixteenth article of our SDGs series, which aims to make the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals easy to put into practice for start-ups and entrepreneurs, in general.
If you are in charge or work for an impact-related start-up that supports one or multiple SDGs you can apply to our Impact Accelerator where we will guide you through the journey to become investment-ready and then, introduce you to our VC partners.
Sources
(1) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from United Nations website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(2) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from European Commission website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(3) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from UNEP website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(4) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from GG Impact Games website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(5) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from Global Goals website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(6) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from Blueprint website. Accessed on 18/02/2022
(7) Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (n.d.). Retrieved from Startus Insights website. Accessed on 18/02/2022