The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are aimed at all countries and organizations across the globe. We are also helping to achieve these objectives, doing so in nearly every field in which we operate.
Our approach
The international community has defined 169 targets for the 17 SDGs in order to facilitate specific actions necessary to achieving the SDGs. As a member of global society, we see ourselves obligated to support the implementation of the SDGs.
What we are doing
Our CR efforts particularly focus on good health and well-being (SDG 3), quality education (SDG 4) and affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) (see diagram below).
But we not only help tackle global challenges within the areas of “Global Health”, “Sustainable Solutions” and “Broad Minds”. Our contributions towards achieving the SDGs have positive effects beyond the strategic spheres of activity established in our Corporate Responsibility strategy. Our 2019 CR Report illustrates the SDGs and targets we specifically support through our management practices and projects.
SDG 3: Good health and well-being
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.
Across the globe, two billion people lack access to medicines, with an estimated 400 million lacking access to effective and affordable essential health services. Given this reality, we are working to help rectify the situation through our Global Health Strategy. However, recognizing that we cannot solve these challenges alone, we have joined forces with strong partners to work towards creating solutions.
Target 3.3: By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases.
- Our approach to improving healthcare for underserved populations
- Strategy for preventing and treating infectious diseases
- Our fight against schistosomiasis
- Our fight against malaria
- Alliances for better access to health
- Access to Medicine Index ranking 2018
Target 3.B: Support the research and development of vaccines and medicines for the communicable and non-communicable diseases that primarily affect developing countries, provide access to affordable essential medicines and vaccines, in accordance with the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, which affirms the right of developing countries to use to the full the provisions in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights regarding flexibilities to protect public health, and, in particular, provide access to medicines for all.
- Our approach to sharing and protecting intellectual property
- Collaboration on open innovation: WIPO Re:Search
- Provide a solid basis for access to healthcare
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative
- Research work on novel therapies, diagnostics, technologies and prevention to combat communicable diseases
- Consortium for the development of a pediatric praziquantel formulation
SDG 4: Quality education
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
We invest in high-quality education, which applies above all to the vocational and advanced training of our employees. This is how we offer an attractive environment for development and remain competitive. In addition, we foster the education of young people so as to empower them to help shape society.
Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.
Target 4.3: By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university.
- Vocational training and dual education programs
- SPARK: igniting a passion for science in the next generation
- Continuing education for teachers and school partnerships
- Junior labs at the Technical University Darmstadt
Target 4.4: By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship.
- Employee learning and education
- Trainee programs and job orientation
- Vocational training and dual education programs
- Integrating refugees through training
SDG 5: Gender equality
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
Gender equality is essential to creating a diverse workforce and an inclusive company culture, which is why we do not tolerate discrimination. In addition, we promote and advance women in low- and middle-income countries through a variety of initiatives.
Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere.
- Our commitment: Group-wide Social and Labor Standards Policy
- Our commitment: Industry-wide initiatives and regulations
- Taking action against discrimination
Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.
- Our approach to diversity and equal opportunity
- Women in leadership roles: Requirements and targets
- Promoting women leaders and talent
- Rooting out unconscious bias
- Networks to bolster diversity
- Healthy Women, Healthy Economies initiative
SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
Sustainable water management is a key component of our environmental stewardship. In withdrawing or discharging water, we aim to impact the aquatic ecosystems near our sites as little as possible and to lower our water consumption, especially in water-stressed areas. Furthermore, we are committed to ensuring that people have access to clean, safe drinking water.
Target 6.1: By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all.
Target 6.3: By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally.
Target 6.4: By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity.
SDG 7: Affordable and clean energy
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.
Efficient energy management is absolutely essential to mitigating our climate impact, which is why we invest in renewable energies and endeavor to develop technologies that are more energy-efficient.
Target 7.2: By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
Target 7.3: By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency.
SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth
Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.
In our Human Rights Charter, we acknowledge our responsibility to uphold and protect human rights and are constantly working to integrate human rights due diligence into our processes. Our dedication to appropriate and fair labor standards is a fundamental component of this responsibility. We expect our suppliers and service providers to comply with social standards that are primarily derived from the core labor standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Global Compact. We also maximize resource efficiency in our water and waste management practices and product development activities, in a bid to promote sustainable economic growth.
Target 8.4: Improve progressively, through 2030, global resource efficiency in consumption and production and endeavor to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation, in accordance with the 10-year framework of programs on sustainable consumption and production, with developed countries taking the lead.
- Our approach to waste and recycling
- Systematic waste reduction
- Advancing the circular economy
- Curbing water use
- Our sustainable packaging strategy
Target 8.5: By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities and equal pay for work of equal value.
Target 8.7: Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labor in all its forms.
- UK Modern Slavery Statement
- Our approach to human rights due diligence
- Our commitment: Guiding principles, Human Rights Charter and laws
- Our approach to making our supply chains more sustainable
- Our approach to responsibility in the mica supply chain
Target 8.8: Protect labor rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment.
- Our approach to human rights due diligence
- Our commitment: Guiding principles, Human Rights Charter and laws
SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.
We are always on the lookout for pioneering developments and trends. We develop products and technologies that enrich people’s lives. New technologies and the advance of digitalization in particular enable us to create innovative products, services and business models.
Target 9.4: By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities.
- Our approach to environmental stewardship
- Material investments in environmental impact mitigation
- Climate impact mitigation
SDG 10: Reduced inequalities
Reduce inequality within and among countries.
We leverage our expertise from our Healthcare business sector to improve access to health worldwide, particularly for people in low- and middle-income countries. Moreover, we believe that a diverse workforce makes us more innovative and successful.
Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
Target 10.A: Implement the principle of special and differential treatment for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, in accordance with World Trade Organization agreements.
SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
We take on social responsibility. Focusing especially on those areas where we can best leverage our expertise, we primarily support health, education and cultural projects. Furthermore, we provide disaster relief and assist people in need in the countries where we operate, especially communities in the immediate vicinity of our sites.
Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management.
SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Respect for the environment is the bedrock of our approach to sustainability. We see it as our duty to not only conserve resources in developing and manufacturing our own products, but also to help our customers make their products more sustainable and more efficient.
Target 12.4: By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment.
- Our approach to sustainable product design
- Green chemistry assessment tool
- Our approach to safe chemical products
- Safety analysis during product development
- Environmentally friendly solvents
- Our approach to plant and process safety
- Our approach to safe transport and storage
Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse.
- Our approach to waste and recycling
- Systematic waste reduction
- Reducing the environmental impacts of waste
- Advancing the circular economy
Target 12.6: Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle.
SDG 13: Climate action
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
Climate change is one of the major challenges of the 21st century. Our company is no exception when it comes to generating greenhouse gases. We are continuously working to reduce these emissions to mitigate our impact on the climate. In addition, we encourage our employees to do their part to preserve the climate.
Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning.
Target 13.3: Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.
SDG 14: Life below water
Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.
Our wastewater may contain traces of substances such as heavy metals or active pharmaceutical ingredients. For us, sustainable water management means not negatively impacting the aquatic ecosystems from which we obtain freshwater, or into which we discharge treated wastewater.
Target 14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution
- Wastewater continuously monitored
- Avoiding antibiotic residues in wastewater
- Alternatives to microplastics in cosmetics
SDG 15: Life on land
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.
Unsealed surfaces represent an important habitat for plants and animals and we think it essential to seal as little surface area as possible. Furthermore, we comply with the stipulations of the Nagoya Protocol and German law that govern natural resource access and benefit sharing. Thus, we ensure that countries providing genetic resources and expertise also benefit from their use.
Target 15.6: Promote fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and promote appropriate access to such resources, as internationally agreed.
SDG 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions
Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.
First and foremost, responsible entrepreneurship means complying with laws, regulations and ethics standards. For us, this is key to maintaining our reputation as an attractive employer and reliable business partner. We also expect fair and responsible conduct from our employees, suppliers and customers.
Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children
- UK Modern Slavery Statement
- Our approach to human rights due diligence
- Our commitment: Guiding principles, Human Rights Charter and laws
- Our commitment: Group-wide Social and Labor Standards Policy
Target 16.5: Substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all their forms.
Target 16.B: Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development.
- Our commitment: Group-wide Social and Labor Standards Policy
- Industry initiatives and regulations for diversity and gender equality
SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.
To reach our goals and drive sustainable development within our company and beyond, we need strong partners. We therefore collaborate with a wide array of organizations, federations, associations, and networks to tackle the challenges of today and tomorrow.
Target 17.6: Enhance North-South, South-South and triangular regional and international cooperation on and access to science, technology and innovation and enhance knowledge sharing on mutually agreed terms, including through improved coordination among existing mechanisms, in particular at the United Nations level, and through a global technology facilitation mechanism.
Target 17.9: Enhance international support for implementing effective and targeted capacity-building in developing countries to support national plans to implement all the sustainable development goals, including through North-South, South-South and triangular cooperation.
- Collaboration with WHO
- Education partnership with the NALA Foundation
- Consortium for the development of a pediatric praziquantel formulation
- Partnership to develop new lead programs for antimalarials