Program Report – Leadership for Sustainable Development

Center for Research and Implementation of Sustainable Practices (CRISP) and Center for Business and Social Research (CBSR), an independent global action-based research institution, jointly organized an online certificate program on “Leadership for Sustainable Development”.

The objectives of this certificate course were to enable stakeholders from different sectors, including employees, researchers, industry managers, teachers, students, and research scholars, to build a foundation for preparing tomorrow’s sustainability leaders. The program started on 02nd July 2022 and came to an end on 23rd July 2022. The cohort comprises 60 participants from different parts of country, different sectors and organizations. The participants got the opportunity to gain a critical understanding of key concepts of leadership, sustainable development, organizational sustainability and the linkages, maintain a better network, command the confidence to lead organizations for sustainable development and develop a futuristic approach.

There were a number of industry enthusiasts who availed the opportunity to attend the sessions, for instance, people from NGOs, famous researchers, the representatives from the government, staff members and students, various entrepreneurs and many sustainability enthusiasts. All of these people were also given study material and certification of participation at the end of the program

The entire program covered seven modules on sustainability and the sessions were tailored to give clarity to all the participants of the sessions. The first module was about the introduction to Sustainable Development Evolution, Global and Regional Context, Evolution, Current Challenges, and Opportunities, the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, COP26. Subsequently, the second module was for the understanding of the logic behind organizational sustainability, corporate social responsibility, Regulatory framework including Section 135, Guidelines for PSUs, Business Responsibility Guidelines 2019, Business Responsibility and Sustainability Framework. Third module included the reports of sustainability stake holder engagement and materiality analysis, BRR Framework of SEBI, GRI Standards, Integrated Reporting. Fourth module shed light on financial sustainability, Financial Performance, ESG Finance, Impact Investing, Socially Responsible Investing (SRI), Green finance. The fifth module was about Sustainability as a Marketing Strategy Green marketing/social marketing, Building Sustainable Brands, Green washing etc. Towards the end of the program, the sixth module talked about Sustainable Lifestyles Sustainable Consumption, Organic Farming, Life Cycle Assessment, Education for Sustainability. Last but not the least, the seventh module included the relationship between leadership and sustainability, the definition of leadership, the leading implementation, the sustainability and contingency leadership approach, the link between organizational dynamics and sustainable development, motivation and inculcating culture of sustainability orientation, incentivizing and rewarding. Moreover, the participants also learnt about the leader’s mindset and about what leaders think of sustainability and sustainable development.

In conclusion, all the participants availed the much needed chance of looking at sustainable development in an holistic manner. The mentors were able to guide and clear the doubts in one to one and group sessions. The program concluded with a valedictory session which was graced by the honored presence of Shri Ayush Gupta, Director (HRD), GAIL (India) Limited and Dr. Shuchin Bajaj, Director, Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services