European banks have much room for improvement with regard to their assessment of the environmental credit risk of projects for which potential clients are seeking funding, says a leading investment company.
The study of 10 Western European banks by investment company ISIS Asset Management was designed to benchmark the environmental credit risk assessment (ECRA) procedures of banks.
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October update of The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
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Multinational companies in Europe and the U.S. are expanding their corporate reporting to include information on “triple bottom line” — economic, social and environmental — performance in order to influence stakeholders and the global capital markets, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ latest Management Barometer survey. In Western Europe, two-thirds (68 percent) of large companies report such information in addition to required financial reports; in the U.S., 41 percent provide such information, the survey found.
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On Monday, September 23, over 500 companies including the FTSE 350 have been invited to participate in the new Corporate Responsibility Index. The Index will define what corporate responsibility means in practice, setting the management and reporting boundaries against which businesses will be judged.
The Index has been developed by Business in the Community, working with over 80 companies led by a Steering Group consisting of representatives from Aviva, Diageo, HBOS, Powergen, Severn Trent and Unilever. The deadline for completing the survey is November 15 and results will be published on March 11, 2003.
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Forbes Magazine this month published its first CSR special, which features contributions from CSR Europe and a number of leading companies. CSR Europe’s Senior Director Ann Vandenhende has also been named a member of Forbes’ Corporate Sustainability Advisory Board. CSR Europe will work together with the magazine on selecting case studies for next year’s sequel. The issue is available at newsagents this week and can also be viewed online at the Forbes website.
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FINERGY, a consortium of Finnish energy companies, has published industry-specific guidelines and tools for better Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) management.
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President Bush has argued that there is “no capitalism without conscience.” He and other policymakers have developed an array of public policies to promote corporate responsibility. But these officials define corporate responsibility too narrowly.
In a new book released today by the National Policy Association (NPA), Susan Ariel Aaronson and James T. Reeves argue that corporate responsibility is not just about ethical behavior and accounting practices, it is also about how companies act towards their stakeholders as well as their shareholders.
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A tough economic climate and a wave of boardroom scandals have turned the spotlight on company reputation and that of the CEO. The overriding current concern of CEOs is sales, according to a survey of over 800 Chief Executive Officers and other executives in Europe and North America by global communications firm, Hill and Knowlton. They also strongly believe that better corporate reputation can directly increase sales and view customers as having the most important influence on reputation – all other factors have declined in relative importance over the course of the year reflecting priorities in difficult market conditions.
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This week the heads of state of over 150 countries will be attending the Johannesburg Earth Summit, to discuss global progress on the implementation of sustainable development – development which “meets the needs of the present without jeopardising the abilities of future generations to meet their own needs”.
The Corporation of London takes sustainable development very seriously, which is why we have spearheaded the UK’s financial services sector response to this summit on behalf of the Government. The Prime Minister will officially launch the results of this work, known as the London Principles Project, during his address to the Earth Summit on Monday 2 September.
What is the London Principles Project?
The London Principles Project examines the role of the UK financial services sector in promoting sustainable development, compiles a compendium of best practice, draws out of this experience lessons for future innovation and puts in place mechanisms to ensure continual progress.
With respect to the last point, one of the mechanisms we have explored is the set of seven London Principles, which propose conditions under which financial market mechanisms can best promote the financing of sustainable development.
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Dow Jones Indexes, STOXX Limited and SAM Group today announced the results of
the annual review for the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI). Effective September 23, 2002 the DJSI World will again include over 300 companies from 23
countries that lead their industry in terms of sustainability. The pan-European
sustainability benchmark – DJSI STOXX – will include more than 180 companies from 14 countries. Both indexes will continue to closely mirror the sectoral distribution of the mainstream equity markets.
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Special GRI UPDATE – WORLD SUMMIT ISSUE
Contents:
* 2002 Guidelines Released
* GRI at the World Summit on Sustainable Development
* Call for Nominations for Stakeholder Council
* Join the Dialogue!
* Paul Hohnen Appointed GRI Vice-President of Strategy
* New GRI Secretariat Office in Amsterdam to Open This Month
* More Organisations Use the Guidelines
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Amidst increasing worldwide calls for improved corporate accountability, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) released today a new set of public reporting guidelines to help companies and other organisations disclose performance beyond the financial bottom line. The 2002 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines provide the framework by which organisations can measure and report progress on their contributions to sustainable development.
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