Contribution of the Telecommunications Industry to Sustainable Development Goals within the Framework of SASB General Issue Categories: The Case of a Telecommunications Company

Year 2024, Volume: 13 Issue: 3, 1633 - 1657, 30.09.2024

Kezban Şimşek

https://doi.org/10.15869/itobiad.1503584

Abstract

Sustainable development is an important issue that shapes the future of our planet by addressing economic, social and environmental factors. The United Nations (UN) has set 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to ensure sustainable development, the success of which depends on global cooperation and joint efforts. The SDGs set out the environmental, social and economic sustainability issues to be achieved by 2030. Private sector efforts have an important role in achieving these goals. As a result of social responsibility and stakeholder demands, companies share their sustainability activities and the SDGs to which these activities contribute through reports. Telecommunications companies also have the potential to play a key role in achieving many SDGs through the innovative, accessible and inclusive digital infrastructure systems they provide. This study’s goal is to reveal the impact of the telecommunications industry on the SDGs through the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board's (SASB) General Issue Categories (GIC). In this context, a methodological framework developed by SASB to identify important sustainability issues across sectors and industries matched SDGs with 26 general sustainability issues. In this framework, SDG impact indices were calculated for the technology and communication sector, which includes the telecommunications industry, and for a telecommunications company operating in Turkey, and SDG impact at the sector, industry and company level was tried to be revealed. According to the calculations, it was concluded that the goal known as SDG 9, which was established to establish strong infrastructures, support sustainable industrialization and strengthen and expand innovation, has an impact score of 37.50% for the telecommunication services industry, 31.25% for the technology&communication sector and 31.25% for the sample telecommunication company. SDG 9 has the highest impact score in telecommunications compared to other SDGs.

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals, Sustainability Reporting, Telecommunications Industry, Materiality analysis, SASB General Issue Category

SASB Genel Konu Kategorileri Çerçevesinde Telekomünikasyon Endüstrisinin Sürdürülebilir Kalkınma Hedeflerine Katkısı: Bir Telekomünikasyon Şirketi Örneği

Abstract

Sürdürülebilir kalkınma ekonomik, sosyal ve çevresel unsurları ele alarak, gezegenimizin geleceğini şekillendiren önemli bir konudur. Başarısı küresel iş birliği ve ortak çabalara bağlı olan sürdürülebilir kalkınmayı sağlamak amacıyla Birleşmiş Milletler (BM) tarafından 17 Sürdürülebilir Kalkınma Hedefi (SDG) belirlenmiştir. SDG’ler 2030 yılına kadar ulaşılması arzulanan çevresel, sosyal ve ekonomik sürdürülebilirlik konularını ortaya koymaktadır. İlgili hedeflere ulaşmada özel sektör çabaları oldukça önemli bir yere sahiptir. Şirketler, toplumsal sorumluluğun ve paydaş taleplerinin bir sonucu olarak sürdürülebilirlik faaliyetlerini ve bu faaliyetlerin hangi SDG’lere katkı sağladığını raporlar aracılığıyla paylaşmaktadırlar. Telekomünikasyon şirketleri de sundukları yenilikçi, erişilebilir ve kapsayıcı dijital altyapı sistemleri aracılığıyla birçok SDG’nin başarılmasında kilit rol oynama potansiyeline sahiptir. Bu çalışma telekomünikasyon endüstrisinin SDG’ler üzerindeki etkisini Sürdürebilirlik Muhasebesi Standartları Kurulu’nun (SASB) Genel Konu Kategorileri (GIC) üzerinden ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu kapsamda SASB’ın sektörler ve endüstrilerde önemli sürdürülebilirlik konularını belirlemek için geliştirdiği 26 genel sürdürülebilirlik konusu ile SDG'lerin eşleştirildiği metodolojik bir çerçeve kullanılmıştır. Bu çerçevede telekomünikasyon endüstrisinin içinde bulunduğu teknoloji ve iletişim sektörü ile Türkiye’de faaliyet gösteren bir telekomünikasyon şirketi için SDG etki endeksleri hesaplanarak sektör, endüstri ve şirket düzeyinde SDG etkisi ortaya konmaya çalışılmıştır. Yapılan hesaplamalara göre güçlü altyapıları tesis etmek, sürdürülebilir sanayileşmeyi desteklemek ve yenilikçiliği güçlendirerek yaygınlaştırmak için oluşturulan ve SDG 9 olarak bilinen hedefin; telekomünikasyon endüstrisi için %37.50, teknoloji ve iletişim sektörü için %31.25, örnek telekomünikasyon şirketi için %31.25 etki puanına sahip olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. SDG 9’un telekomünikasyon alanında diğer SDG’lere göre en yüksek etki puanına sahip SDG olduğu görülmüştür.

Keywords

Sürdürülebilir Kalkınma Hedefleri, Sürdürülebilirlik Raporlaması, Telekomünikasyon Endüstrisi, Önemlilik Analizi, SASB Genel Konu Kategorisi

Thanks

Prof. Dr. Güler Aras ve Arş. Gör. Dr. Evrim Hacıoğlu Kazak'a araştırmama verdikleri destekten ötürü sonsuz teşekkürlerimi sunarım.

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