127
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
D. B. Abraham, S. D. Iyer (eds.), Promoting the Sustainable Development Goals in North American
Cities, Sustainable Development Goals Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59173-1_10
How the Youth Social
Entrepreneurship (YSE) Model
Supports Implementation of SDG
#8 to bring Economic Growth and
Decent Work in American Cities
Peg Thomas, Nancy Jacobs, Jennifer Valorose,
and Laura Schauben
10.1 Introduction. The UN
Sustainable Development
Goals and the YSE Model
The United Nations Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) are a framework of 17 goals
designed to uncover and aggregate information in
a manner that provides comparisons between disparate global areas and sectors. Indicators to
track progress toward each goal are defined
through 169 global monitoring indicators with
suggestions for Complementary National
Indicators. While used throughout Europe and
Africa, these indicators have yet to be widely
used in the United States and by nonprofits working to change public policies (Fig. 10.1).
The SDG #8 Workforce Development goals
promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable
economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. Two of the subgoals, 8.5 and 8.6, and strategy 8.B.1 are focused
on operationalizing national strategies for youth
employment toward full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men,
including young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
(Fig. 10.2).
Amy Liu (2018), President and Director of
Brookings Metropolitan Policy, examined how
the 17 SDGs can help American cities tackle
urgent local economic, political, and environmental challenges vital to the health and wellbeing of their residents. Liu concludes that the
SDGs “reflect the imperative to create an economy of opportunity that promotes economic
mobility for all.” Elli Anzilotti (2018) notes that
there are significant barriers for American cities
including “poverty, racial inequity, climate inaction, and failure to provide healthy food to all
residents” which make implementing common
indicators challenging. While these issues are not
unique to cities in the United States, Anzilotti
states that there are certain aspects of American
politics and culture that render them especially
difficult to overcome. Anzilotti cites Jessica
Espey, Senior Advisor for the Sustainable
Development Solutions Network, who states,
“Racial inequity is something we identified as a
theme in every American city. When looking at
differences between white and nonwhite groups
in cities across America… there are acute
differences in many outcomes–from poverty to
health outcomes” (Anzilotti 2018).
The SDG Index and Dashboards Report for
the Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) countries shows that many
P. Thomas (*) · N. Jacobs
Sundance Family Foundation, St. Paul, MN, USA
J. Valorose · L. Schauben
Wilder Research, St. Paul, MN, USA
10
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
D. B. Abraham, S. D. Iyer (eds.), Promoting the Sustainable Development Goals in North American
Cities, Sustainable Development Goals Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59173-1_10
How the Youth Social
Entrepreneurship (YSE) Model
Supports Implementation of SDG
#8 to bring Economic Growth and
Decent Work in American Cities
Peg Thomas, Nancy Jacobs, Jennifer Valorose,
and Laura Schauben
10.1 Introduction. The UN
Sustainable Development
Goals and the YSE Model
The United Nations Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) are a framework of 17 goals
designed to uncover and aggregate information in
a manner that provides comparisons between disparate global areas and sectors. Indicators to
track progress toward each goal are defined
through 169 global monitoring indicators with
suggestions for Complementary National
Indicators. While used throughout Europe and
Africa, these indicators have yet to be widely
used in the United States and by nonprofits working to change public policies (Fig. 10.1).
The SDG #8 Workforce Development goals
promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable
economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. Two of the subgoals, 8.5 and 8.6, and strategy 8.B.1 are focused
on operationalizing national strategies for youth
employment toward full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men,
including young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
(Fig. 10.2).
Amy Liu (2018), President and Director of
Brookings Metropolitan Policy, examined how
the 17 SDGs can help American cities tackle
urgent local economic, political, and environmental challenges vital to the health and wellbeing of their residents. Liu concludes that the
SDGs “reflect the imperative to create an economy of opportunity that promotes economic
mobility for all.” Elli Anzilotti (2018) notes that
there are significant barriers for American cities
including “poverty, racial inequity, climate inaction, and failure to provide healthy food to all
residents” which make implementing common
indicators challenging. While these issues are not
unique to cities in the United States, Anzilotti
states that there are certain aspects of American
politics and culture that render them especially
difficult to overcome. Anzilotti cites Jessica
Espey, Senior Advisor for the Sustainable
Development Solutions Network, who states,
“Racial inequity is something we identified as a
theme in every American city. When looking at
differences between white and nonwhite groups
in cities across America… there are acute
differences in many outcomes–from poverty to
health outcomes” (Anzilotti 2018).
The SDG Index and Dashboards Report for
the Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) countries shows that many
P. Thomas (*) · N. Jacobs
Sundance Family Foundation, St. Paul, MN, USA
J. Valorose · L. Schauben
Wilder Research, St. Paul, MN, USA
10