“The objectives of the UN’s Agenda 2003 cannot only be achieved on a political level, they also demand that the private sector take on a crucial role. The most advanced global enterprises – and Enel is certainly one of these – see the SDGs as an opportunity to create sustainable value”
Now companies sharing Enel’s determination to build enduring success base their strategy on sustainability.
“Four years ago we decided to focus our growth on renewables and intelligent networks, setting ourselves the objective of decarbonisation in line with the Paris agreement. We made a responsible decision concerning SDG 13 (climate action) and towards our shareholders, who expect a return on their investment. It’s impossible to distinguish between these two elements,” said Valcalda.
Initiatives like the Festival promoted by ASviS present important opportunities for sharing and promoting this new strategic approach. For our company this means combining sustainability with innovation.
“Achieving the aims of the 2030 Agenda demands innovation. That is why we have strengthened our collaboration InnoCentive, the world’s largest crowdsourcing platform. This platform brings together 380,000 ‘solvers’ from over 300 countries and is now linked to our portal at www.openinnovability.enel.com. By 2021 it will have enabled us to launch 50 challenges to find technical solutions that will help us achieve our sustainable development goals.”
The first of the challenges deriving from the new agreement was launched on 14 May in San Francisco in collaboration with the Ferrovie dello Stato (Italian state railways).
Enel and the Ferrovie dello Stato are looking for partners who can develop a web and smartphone app for cognitive and predictive virtual assistance, using natural language. It will be useful for clients in the pre-travel stage (planning, ticket purchasing) and during travel (in the event of service interruptions, for example), thereby making integrated, multimodal journey planning possible.
Enel makes a maximum effort
As it did last year, the Festival included three national events organised by ASviS, where we played a leading role. The conference on 22 May entitled “Italy 2030 – Innovation, Redevelopment, Investment, Transformation – 10 years to achieve a sustainable Italy,” which was held in the MAXXI auditorium in Rome, marked the official start of proceedings. The emphasis was on the need to upgrade Italy’s infrastructure through a wide-reaching public and private investment plan, adopting a new development model.
The second was “SDGs, Climate and the Future of Europe,” an international conference which took place on 31 May at the Unicredit Pavilion in Milan. Its aim was to present a “strengthened partnership” between the members of the EU and representatives of the public and private sectors, making Europe the world leader in the implementation of a “polylateralism” that can accelerate the achievement of the SDGs and climate accords.
The Festival’s closing event took place in Rome on 7 June, when ASviS presented the results of the 17 days of reflection to the institutions, setting in motion a debate on fundamental themes and the steps to be taken to ensure the SDGs are achieved, and safeguard the future of this generation and those to come.
In parallel with these three main events, one of the new features of the 2018 Festival was the staging on each of the 17 days of a nationally or internationally significant event on one or more themes related to the 17 SDGs.
In collaboration with ASviS and the GSE (the Italian government’s energy marketing board), Enel was responsible for holding the national event on SDGs 7 and 13. The convention will take place in Rome on 6 June at the MAXXI (National Museum of 21st Century Arts), and was an important opportunity to consider the subjects of affordable, clean energy (SDG7) and climate action (SDG13), two of the four objectives to which Enel has a formal commitment.
SUstainability co-players in a series of events
The event comprised a number of initiatives launched throughout Italy, including debates, book presentations, exhibitions, screenings, guided visits, flash mobs, children’s workshops and meetings about the new green jobs, filling these 17 days with discussion and raising awareness among an increasingly large section of the general population. We all played a role, as is reflected by Enel’s commitment and the title of this year’s convention, “SUstainability.”
One of the other events Enel had a direct involvement in was Le rotte della sostenibilità, (The Paths of Sustainability), which was held on 23 May in Verona by the Salone della CSR e dell’Innovazione sociale (CSR and Social Innovation Fair). Piera Savino, Sustainability Projects Enel Italy, spoke on the subject of the circular economy. On 28 May in Naples, Robert Denda, Head of Network Technology and Innovation, took part in the national event on Goal 9 – Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.
In Milan on 29 May Alessia Cecchini, Sustainability Planning and Performance Management, took part in the workshop on “Non-financial Disclosure: accelerator or brake,” which examined the recent legislation regulating the reporting of non-financial assets for companies with a national importance. In Genoa on the same day Luca Meini, Head of Environmental Strategies, took part in the convention “We can do it! Genoa, sustainable development grows, companies implementing it grow.”
On 4 June Head of Sustainability Andrea Valcalda took part in a meeting with the title “2030 Agenda: company leadership for sustainable development,” which was held in Milan by the Sodalitas Foundation as part of the Festival. Its aim was to strengthen the alliance between society and companies, by working together with those on the cutting edge of sustainability to mobilise a wide-ranging commitment to a future of growth, development and inclusion. The same day also saw a focus on sustainability and tourism during a convention organised by MiBACT (The Italian Ministry of Culture) exactly a year after the national celebrations marking the International Year of Sustainable Tourism. Federico Caleno, Head of e-Mobility Solutions Development for our new Enel X division spoke about the projects involving innovation, e-mobility and the protection and enhancement of our cultural and scenic heritage.
Finally, on 5 June, Patricia Navarra, Sustainability Innovation and Stakeholder Engagement Manager, took part in the round table “The Dynamo Camp project for the health, well-being and inclusion of children with severe medical conditions and the role of quality teaching. This was held at the Tor Vergata University in Rome under the aegis of ECO-FORUM, a mini film festival on the theme of sustainability.
