The ESG concept: Strong technological leaps or unresolved problems?
Authors: Denisov M. V. 
Published: November 2023

Aim.To establish what new and useful things the ESG concept has contributed to the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals, what technologies can ensure sustainable growth and environmental protection, and whether there has been a qualitative leap in the methodological support of the green agenda.

Objectives.To analyze the chain of working ideas that laid the foundation for the current international climate agenda; to reveal the problems and challenges posed and implemented in different green economy concepts; to test the hypothesis that there are no strong solutions and qualitative leap in the ESG concept relative to previous green economy concepts to achieve sustainable development goals; to propose relevant challenges in the ESG transition.

Methods.The study is built on an array of precedents comprising more than 100 non-randomized examples without reference information. The collection of such examples showed that, firstly, it is often possible to draw meaningful, reproducible information from practice, books, articles, but the sources devoted to the topic of ESG often only broadcast the ideas of the international climate agenda, and there are very few critical articles and reviews; secondly, there are many standards in the field of ESG, but it is difficult for the international community to come to a single ESG standard due to the accumulated contradictions. The collected materials are sorted, structured and summarized on a factual basis. As a result, a data model has been built that, among other things, shows actual trends as well as actions taken by participants in the climate agenda. This makes it possible to separate the phenomena occurring in reality from existing declarations, advertisements, assessments and opinions. Hypotheses and expert assessments are highlighted, and references to the authors’ works are provided. On the basis of examples the theses in the article are formulated, conclusions are drawn, and a number of recommendations with novelty and usefulness for potential users are given. Due to the volume of development, the author’s materials are distributed in a number of publications, i.e. the research is ongoing. As it is replenished with new examples of interest, further clarifications regarding objective limitations and prohibitions may be made in the articles. The method of searching and analyzing precedents, as well as general scientific methods of research, including methods of comparative and logical analysis, were applied in the preparation of the article.

Results.The hypothesis of the study is confirmed: there have been no strong solutions, much less qualitative leaps, in the field of green technologies so far. There are only problems that need to be addressed in the context of ongoing research.

Conclusions.The field of green technology is relatively new and no strong technological leaps have been found. There are obvious problems that require solutions, new approaches. The field of green economy is still nascent, waiting for world-class breakthrough ideas. It is too early to study qualitative leaps. Direct transfer of concepts to the economy from other areas (e.g. religion, charity, etc.) equals an increase in risks. With all the complexity of preventing global climate change, it is necessary to solve a set of problems not only in the energy sector, but also in the rest of the economy, primarily in industry and agriculture, as well as in the social sphere.