Good morning, colleagues and friends,  

I don’t know about you — but I’m feeling energized.   

Because today, we’re not just launching a new initiative. We’re issuing a challenge.  

A challenge to ourselves. To our institutions. To every organization that says it wants to build a sustainable future — for our children, and for their children.  

And that challenge is simple:    

Don’t just report impact. Deliver it.  

For too long, sustainability has lived in the realm of promises. There are frameworks. There are disclosures. There are commitments. But commitments alone don’t change lives.    

What does?  

Governance that prioritizes people and planet.  
Strategy that aligns with the SDGs.  
Operations that serve more than the bottom line.  
Finance that flows where it’s needed most.    

That’s what the ImpactWorks Alliance is here to advance. Co-convened by UNDP, ISO, and Social Value International, this is a global partnership rooted not in theory — but in action.     

Built on standards. Driven by tools. Sustained by shared learning.  

Already, more than 1.5 million organizations around the world use ISO management system standards to manage quality, environment, energy, and safety.    

Now, with the upcoming launch of the ISO/UNDP SDG Management System Standard — also called ISO 53001 — sustainability becomes part of the same daily systems that shape how organizations think, plan, and perform.    

At UNDP, we’ve been building the foundation through the SDG Impact Standards — principles-based, outcomes-focused, and freely available as a global public good.    

These aren’t just checklists. They are blueprints for embedding impact into the heart of decision-making.    

In an early signal of its growing global importance, the ISO/UNDP standard is referenced in the FfD4 outcome document. And from day one, the ImpactWorks Alliance will play a key role in implementing the Seville Platform for Action.    

And none of this would be possible without the unwavering support of our partners — Norway, Temasek Trust, the Government of Italy, and a wide coalition of countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America — who believed early on that impact must become core to how economies operate.    

I want to extend a special thanks to Norway — whose early and steadfast support was instrumental in developing the SDG Impact Standards and building the foundation for this Alliance.    

We are honored to be joined today by Norad’s acting Director General, Lisetta Trebbi, and we look forward to deepening this partnership in the years to come.    

Thanks to all our partners, we are now in a position to go further.    

And this year, we go further.  
Together with our partners, we are advancing these global standards — and in 2026, certification will be available for ISO 53001, establishing a globally recognized benchmark for sustainability management.    

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about ticking boxes or adding paperwork.  
This is about building a better way of doing business.  

Because when sustainability is embedded in decision-making,  
When impact is part of performance,  
We don’t just see progress — we see value.  

And we know it works.    

At UNDP, we’ve seen that for every one dollar invested in systems to manage for sustainability and impact, up to sixty dollars in value can be created — across social, environmental, and financial outcomes.  

That’s not just return on investment.  
That’s return on intention.  
And that’s the kind of value the ImpactWorks Alliance exists to unlock.    

This isn’t just the right thing to do.  
It is the only viable strategy for resilience, for inclusive growth, and for the well-being of our planet.    

That’s what this alliance is about:  
Turning values into value.  
Turning intention into institutional behavior.  
Turning sustainability from aspiration into action.  

We are now entering a co-design phase, and I invite every one of you to help shape this partnership.    

Bring your experience. Bring your voice. Bring your boldest ideas.  

Because we begin that work here — with leaders from across the public and private sectors who are, each in their own way, walking the talk.    

And let’s remember: sustainability is not a fixed destination.  
It’s a daily discipline. A shared conversation. A choice — made again and again — to do better.    

I started by saying I’m feeling energized. And the truth is, I wake up every morning motivated by one thing: knowing that we all can look at younger generations and say we did everything we could to help build a better future.  

The ImpactWorks Alliance can be the foundation of that future — a future where business decisions are aligned with positive outcomes for people, planet, and generations to come.    

Thank you.