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Sustainable Development Goals

Purpose
Why?

Our purpose is to design and build sustainable cities and resilient communities through climate adaptation for everyone, with everyone.

SOCIAL

Global challenges, such as climate change, exacerbate social inequity by affecting mainly vulnerable communities. Thus, sustainable innovation entails social innovation.

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  • ​Only 38% of countries have adopted just transition principles to deliver the Paris Agreement. (UNDP, 2022)

  • The benefits of a just transition range from a green jobs revolution to “the potential for deeper social change, by reforming existing systems that undermine climate equity and social equality.” (UNDP, 2022)

  • 18 million net jobs worldwide could be created if we keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius, while 6 million gross jobs in the energy sector could be lost by 2030 with the transition away from fossil fuels. (ILO, 2018)

ECONOMIC

Climate risks represent not only problems but also opportunities for cities.

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  • The implementation of measures to achieve the Paris Agreement and invest in a circular economy could trigger a net job gain of 24 million jobs by 2030. (ILO, 2018)

  • A green economy could create up to 60 million new jobs, while 42 million jobs could be created through renewable energy alone by 2050. (UNDP, 2022)

  • An acceleration of renewable energy and energy efficiency would improve global GDP by 2.5 percent by 2050 compared with business as usual. (UN, 2021)

ENVIRONMENTAL

The climate is changing and will change in the decades to come. We must understand the underlying causes of this phenomenon to ensure the best social, economic, and environmental conditions for future generations.

 

  • If greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced, global average temperature will increase between 3.5 and 4 degrees Celsius in this century. (WB, 2012)

  • If global warming increases by 2°C in the next 20 to 30 years, the world will face food shortages, heat waves, and more powerful cyclones. (WB, 2012)

  • European countries, such as the Netherlands, will experience an increase in temperature of between 1 and 2.3 degress Celsius and sea level rise of between 15 and 40 centimeters by 2050 (compared to the period 1981-2010). (KNMI, 2014).

Sources: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), International Labour Organization (ILO), UN Report ‘Enabling SDGS Through Inclusive, Just Energy Transitions’ (UN), The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), and World Bank (WB).

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