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EDF Report Offers Perspectives on the Current State of Sustainability Ratings and Rankings and Suggestions for Improvement Ratings, rankings, scores, best of lists – these are increasingly important to corporate issuers and for investors. The popular CBS TV Network nighttime host David Letterman for many years provided us with periods of laughter with his well-known top 10 list segments. (Example: The Top 10 Stupid Things Americans Say to Brits.) Popular audience “top 10” awards seem to proliferate overnight (like mushrooms in the forest) coming forth from publishers, NGOs, conference organizers, trade associations, professional membership organizations, academia, and others. All are welcome to some degree by investors and stakeholders and can add luster to the company reputation and brand. Indeed, here at G&A Institute we have well beyond 400 “corporate awards and recognitions” related to ESG / Sustainability identified and profiled to help client companies round out their third party awards roster with relevant, suitable recognitions of different kinds. The competitive kinds that we’re all familiar with include Best in industry. Best workplace for women. For LGBTQ employees. Best business sector economic development contributors in the state (the Governor’s Award). Best companies for Hispanic or African-American engineers…and on and on. Some of these types of recognitions are well known and for investors and stakeholders, welcomed signals of third party recognitions of a company’s citizenship, responsibility or sustainability / ESG progress and achievements. Many awards began as editorial features of magazines. (In past years, members of our team worked with Fortune on a “Best Places” annual award.) Forbes is another well-regarded business and finance publication with much-followed awards for companies (the Best Employers List; Best Employers for Diversity; Top Companies to Work For, and more). Investor-Focused Ratings / Rankings / Scores / Leadership Lists At the top – in the board room, C-suite -- these are indeed critical recognitions and independent (to a large degree) profiles of a company’s ESG strategy, actions, achievements, and recognitions. Of course there’s grumbling from companies about the efforts to keep up and the independent views of the raters, and how the company may be presented in the ratings work.So how do the best of these ratings pay off for the public issuer? Consider: In terms of ROI for their awards efforts, sustainability rankings can help companies define internal performance measures, attract top talent and link executive comp to corporate sustainability efforts…so write the authors of an essay in Forbes. Victoria Mills and Austin Reagan of the EDF (Environmental Defense Fund) then add: Unfortunately, there’s a significant problem with these sustainability lists. The authors point to a new report – “The Blind Spot in Corporate Sustainability Rankings: Climate Policy Leadership” – produced by EDF+Business -- which posits that: “Environmental problems like climate change will never be solved through voluntary corporate actions alone. Public policies are critical to reduce environmental impacts across the economy in an efficient and equitable manner, and on a scale commensurate with the challenges.” The missing link, thinks EDF, is [corporate] public policy advocacy; companies can be doing more than just addressing their own ESG issues (and winning third party recognition for leadership and admirable rankings and scores from ESG raters). EDF thinks the most powerful tool companies have to fight climate change is their political influence. The report explains EDF views on rankings vs. ratings; analysis of rankings (“all have a major blind spot”, explains EDF); the challenges of integrating climate policy advocacy into sustainability rankings; and, a series of recommendations. The EDF opinions are sure to stimulate debate now among asset owners and managers, and within the corporate community. We’re all hooked on sustainability / ESG rankings, ratings, scores and other opinions; they’ve become ever-more important in the decision-making of key asset managers. So, in this brief report, EDF shares its perspective on the way forward to make corporate reporting on ESG more robust. Click here to view the 12-page report. The Good, The Bad And The Blind Spot Of Corporate Sustainability Rankings Sustainability: Continuing Forward Momentum! Do Consumers Care About Sustainability? – Here Are Some Signs That They Do…And That Marketers Respond to Consumer Tastes and Expectations… Eating our way to a sustainable future Buying new clothes? Here are 3 easy ways to shop more sustainably “Integrating sustainability enhances trust in brands,” Frédéric Dreux, Unilever Prestige Impossible Foods Boosts Sustainability Across All Key Metrics Refill Startups Go Green With Sustainable Packaging On the B-to-B Marketing Front – Industry Trends… Study: Responsible Sourcing Gets the Nod in Sustainable Packaging Goals Powering sustainable solutions from the little red dot EU urged to support local Fair Trade initiatives: ‘We see a willingness to buy sustainable and fair’ Sustainability professionals must shine brighter than their peers: Here's how to do it ...and Corporate Sustainability Actions BSEE: Key to energy security lay within offshore safety performance, environmentally sustainable energy production BRIT and FIVS Partner to Expand International Sustainable Winegrowing Competition and Award
Environmental regulations have become impossible to follow Opinion: Why further financial crises are inevitable Bayer Stock Tumbles After Jury Finds Weed-Killer Roundup Caused Cancer US judge halts hundreds of drilling projects in groundbreaking climate change ruling
JPMorgan Chase is investing $350 million to get workers ready for the future Jamie Dimon says we've split the US economy, leaving the poor behind Investment bank Goldman Sachs wants half of its entry-level recruits to be women AT&T peels off layer of political spending secrecy — thanks to pushy investors and the Michael Cohen fiasco Europe hits Google with a third, $1.7 billion antitrust fine Walmart, Sam’s Club and the Walmart Foundation Announce a Commitment of $100,000 for Midwest Flood Relief Smithfield Foods Donates More Than 42,000 Pounds of Protein To Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina | New Governance & Accountability
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G&A Institute Sustainability Update™ ________________________________________
________________________________________ _________________________________________ Louis Coppola from G&A Institute Goes In Depth on How to Improve ESG Performance
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_________________________________________ FLASH REPORT: 85% of S&P 500 Index® Companies Publish Sustainability Reports in 2017
________________________________________ GRI'S USA, UK & IRELAND
G&A Institute is the Data Partner for the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) in the USA, UK and Republic of Ireland. We identify, receive, collect, analyze, database, and communicate about every report issued in any of the 3 countries. Over the past 6+ years, G&A analyzed 6,000-plus sustainability reports in this pro bono role and databased 100+ important data points for each report. Find out more @ G&A's What's A Data Partner _________________________________________
Navigating the way to sustainability... | ||||||||||||||
The Sustainability Highlights eNewsletter is prepared by Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. based on continuous monitoring of trends and developments in Sustainability and ESG. Governance & Accountability Instiute is the "Sustainability Headquarters™" for clients in the corporate, investment, public and social sectors. Based in New York, G&A is a for-profit consulting organization providing a range of value-added strategies, services and resources related to ESG & sustainability to clients in the corporate and capital markets communities.For G&A's full range of services, click on each of the links below: For more information, contact Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. (New York, New York) | |||||||||||||||
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