Thriving People

There is an increasingly urgent need to embed social sustainability within Aotearoa New Zealand’s workplaces, communities and wider society – and business has an important role to play. 

Our vision

The best businesses are good for people, the planet, and prosperity. This requires businesses to support the well-being of their employees and to positively impact society.

In October 2023, we launched our flagship report ‘Thriving People – Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG’, which showed the New Zealand business community has an exciting role to play in progressing social impact and equity. From this report, our current priorities are:

  • Human Rights in the Supply Chain – empowering businesses to take a leadership position on human rights.
  • The Inner Development Goals (IDGs) – a global movement helping businesses build the skills and mindset needed to drive sustainable transformation.

      Work programme

      Setting ambition

      Transforming mindsets through the introduction of the Inner Development Goals to Aotearoa New Zealand

      Evidence and research

      Working with Kantar on Better Futures Thrive, Aotearoa New Zealand’s only consumer insights report on social sustainability issues

      Collective action

      Partnering with Deloitte and Walk Free to co-host peer-to-peer network Collaborative Advantage

      Completed areas of work

      • Lifting the living standards of Aotearoa (3 part series).
      • Moving Beyond Diversity – Creating Workplaces of Belonging. SBC members are integrating ways of working that support greater diversity and inclusion within their businesses and reporting progress transparently.
      • Social Impact – SBC members are collectively increasing and measuring their positive impact on the communities in which they work.

      Pages and resources

      Putting the heart in our mahi – Activating ‘S’ in ESG 

      Putting the heart in our mahi – Activating ‘S’ in ESG 

      Nāu te rourou, nāku te rourou, ka ora ai te iwi  I love this whakatauki as it talks to community, to ...
      How should businesses measure and maximise social impact? 

      How should businesses measure and maximise social impact? 

      SBC’s 2024 Thriving Voices online event series continued last week with our kaputī kōrero focusing on measuring ...
      Fonterra: Doing Good Together through community investment and impact

      Fonterra: Doing Good Together through community investment and impact

      Fonterra is a dairy co-operative owned by thousands of New Zealand dairy farmers and their families. Being a ...
      Social sustainability trends to look out for in 2024 

      Social sustainability trends to look out for in 2024 

      We know the 'S' in ESG has been living in the shadow of ‘E’. However, business leaders are increasingly realising ...
      Updates on THRIVE – SBC’s Future Work ecosystem

      Updates on THRIVE – SBC’s Future Work ecosystem

      By Robert Perry, Manager Thriving People December 2023  SBC and founding project partners Meridian, NZ ...
      Modern slavery laws – how ready is your organisation?

      Modern slavery laws – how ready is your organisation?

      8, 10, [??], 8,000 – What’s the missing number?  The answer is 77. If you answered correctly, you must have ...
      Thriving Communities – equipping your business for growing impact together  

      Thriving Communities – equipping your business for growing impact together  

      SBC’s Thriving Voices online event series continued last week with our kaputī kōrero focusing on community ...
      Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG

      Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG

      Strengthening the 'S' in ESGSocial sustainability or the ‘S’ in ESG is changing rapidly. The landscape is complex. ...
      Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG for Aotearoa businesses

      Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG for Aotearoa businesses

      There is an increasingly urgent need to embed social sustainability within Aotearoa New Zealand’s workplaces, ...
      Takeaways from the ‘Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG’ report launch 

      Takeaways from the ‘Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG’ report launch 

      I am very pleased to announce the launch of the ‘Strengthening the ‘S’ in ESG’ report at SBC's inaugural Thriving ...
      It’s time we strengthen the ‘S’ in ESG 

      It’s time we strengthen the ‘S’ in ESG 

      By Robert Perry (Manager Thriving People)   We’re all familiar with Aotearoa New Zealand’s net zero ...
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