JLens was asked to convene Jewish institutions to consider how they might further the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in advance of the 2017 Faith in Finance Summit held in Switzerland by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation in partnership with the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Released by the United Nations in 2015, the SDGs are a comprehensive effort by countries to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure sustainable prosperity for all. The UN has made clear that investors are critical to the achievement of the SDGs, which cannot be realized solely by government spending and philanthropy. Faith communities, as a significant subset of the global investor base, have the potential to play an important leadership role in this effort.
JLens is a network of thousands of Jewish institutions and individuals exploring investing through a uniquely Jewish lens. Our goals in writing this report are twofold: (1) Highlight the alignment between the SDGs and Jewish teachings, and (2) Spark a conversation among Jewish communal leaders about the SDGs as a framework for embracing impact investing more broadly.