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The European SDG Summit 2021

  • The European SDG Summit will take place on 11-14 October 2021.

  • Businesses, industry federations, EU policymakers will engage in action-oriented dialogues to conciliate a just transition with climate action.

  • CSR Europe and Moody’s Vigeo Eiris will launch the first Sustainable Industry Barometer

  • Organisations interested in sponsoring the Summit are invited to check the 2021 sponsorship package

2020 has bluntly forced the world to recognize the need to accelerate the journey towards climate neutrality and the urgency for the adoption of an inclusive approach to the green and digital transition. The pandemic and its fallout exposed deep divisions within society, affecting the most vulnerable people. Already in 2015, the Paris Agreement recognized how shifting towards a resilient, carbon-neutral economy would boost prosperity and drive net job creation long-term. However, for the twin transition to succeed, climate action needs to be fair in the short- and medium-term.

In this context, businesses have a key role to play. As outlined in the CSR Europe 2030 Strategy, companies are uniquely positioned to provide innovative solutions to meet present and future sustainability challenges. They can drive social, environmental, and economic progress, contributing to the creation of a fair and equal society in which everyone can thrive. Society’s concerns can be embedded in business priorities, business models, in a sustainable approach to investments and finance, and – last but not least – in enhanced collaboration between companies and their stakeholders.


In the face of a climate crisis and weakened social cohesion, we need to step up our efforts now.


In 2020 several companies expressed zero emissions targets and increased their engagement with their value chain partners and competitors to move towards carbon-neutral and circular business model. They also stepped up their actions to keep their employees and communities safe; to promote diversity and inclusion; to respect international human rights and labour standards and reach the Sustainable Development Goals.

At the same time, we have also seen industry federations embracing the sustainable business transformation agenda with new policies, sustainability roadmaps, and collaborative actions to advance the agenda faster and on a wider scale.

Finally, at the European and national level, policymakers took urgent action to protect the health of their citizens while preserving their social, emotional, and mental well-being. The Commission’s European Green Deal has sparked a wide array of regulatory and non-regulatory initiatives to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.

These are the encouraging evolutions that we want to continue fostering at the new edition of the European SDG Summit 2021 that will take place on 11th-14th October 2021.

In the 30 virtual and fully open sessions of the 2021 SDG Summit, businesses, industry federations, and EU policymakers will engage in action-oriented dialogues to conciliate a just transition with climate action:  how can we build a prosperous and inclusive society while pursuing a green and digital transition?

Last year, we launched the European Pact for Sustainable Industry, a public campaign to make the European Green Deal and its Climate Pact a success by scaling up the impact of individual efforts made by companies, industry federations, and EU leaders.

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This year CSR Europe will release the first Sustainable Industry Barometer together with Moody’s Vigeo Eiris. The Barometer will provide data on the sustainability level and maturity of European industry federations, demonstrating the progress made and where additional efforts are needed.

If your enterprise or industry federation is eager to put sustainability, innovation, science, technology, responsibility, and growth at the service of a healthier, more human business model, then join us for this unique Rendez-Vous.

Every day the Summit will have in programme 1 high-level plenary session, 3 European SDG Roundtables, 3 Industry SDG Roundtables, and 3 National SDG Roundtables. Thousands of change-makers will come together with one purpose: take swift, unified, and collaborative actions for a just transition that connects climate action with the need for an inclusive economy and sustainable development.

If your organization is interested in sponsoring the event, check our sponsorship package

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