ESG and social impact

Why this matters

Education is a keystone investment into ensuring the realization of all global goals, including climate change, diversity, equity, and inclusion, public health, and broad-based economic growth. Across the world, businesses invest hundreds of millions of dollars in education in countries across the globe. Yet too many of these resources do not have an impact on learning and skill development. A study from the Brookings Institution revealed that millions of dollars in business contributions to support global education from the Fortune 500 companies were small, short-term, uncoordinated efforts that were not reaching the most marginalized. GBC-Education has been changing this reality since its inception.

Both how the business community channels its resources and how the education sector works with the business community will play key roles in determining not only the future of education but the entire Sustainable Development Goals agenda.

Integrated social impact strategies and ESG investing are critical ways that businesses can improve lives and meet societal challenges. Corporate responsibility is also increasingly important for companies to improve their bottom line and attract and retain investors, talent, and customers: 86% of employees prefer to work for companies that care about the same issues they do. Consumers are also demanding action on social issues from businesses: 83% of consumers think companies should be actively shaping ESG best practices. Now, more than ever, the world is looking to the business community to take social action.

Together, we will ensure that corporate investments create business impact as well as a more sustainable, scalable, and systemic social impact.

What we are doing

GBC-Education works with the business community to incorporate sustainable and scalable investments in education into their social impact, philanthropy, corporate responsibility, and ESG practices.

In partnership with the BHP Foundation, GBC-Education developed the Business Investment for Education Impact initiative (BIEI) to build a stronger, more informed, and impactful network of businesses. Through this initiative, GBC-Education can consolidate best practices, generate and share evidence-based tools, and improve engagement between the private and education sectors.

Creating Rigorous Metrics and Generating Impact Based ESG Investments

Education’s position at the core of ESG: The evidence-based key to social and economic outcomes

Education, human development, and training — which encompass policies, programs, and activities ranging from early childhood development and literacy to formal education for marginalized groups and skills for the workforce — present tangible corporate actions and well-researched, quantifiable impact metrics for evaluating performance. This allows for purposeful corporate action with measurable impact and results in not only social performance but across all three pillars of ESG.

Moreover, investment in education, human development, and training is not only a necessity for today’s workforce but an essential investment for future generations. All available data make it clear that positioning education equity at the core of corporate social policies is a valuable and impactful way to advance the objectives of companies and investors seeking to achieve better financial outcomes and improve not only social outcomes but all ESG metrics and credibility.

Read our ESG REPORT

Join us to build state-of-the-art tools and metrics for “S” that drive investment and impact.

The Global Business Coalition for Education will use the blueprint outlined in our recent report to create a globally recognized public good to drive new investments in ESG that systemically promote equity in education, improve societal outcomes and address material corporate issues. We will harness our unparalleled expertise in education research and vast network of partner companies to:

Build a Team of Advisors: Gain insights by coordinating an advisory network of corporate executives across various industries, investment professionals, financial institutions, ESG rating agencies, thought leaders in education, and global reporting agencies.
Generate Solutions: Build out evidence-based solutions linked to corporate material issues, including both internal policies and training, as well as external community-based programs.
Develop Metrics: Create tangible, substantive metrics for each solution, demonstrating broader societal impacts and allowing companies to dive deeper into the “S” in ESG
Provide Evidence: Maintain an ongoing and updated repository of the latest evidence, ensuring decision-making is driven by the latest data.
Track Good Work: Develop a database of company performance based on education metrics and provide rankings and ratings to highlight the top performers.
Inform Investment Portfolios: Work with financial institutions to create education-focused ESG products for investors to incentivize increased investment in education equity from the private sector.