UN-ESG

EU Lawmakers Pass Rules for “Sustainable” Finance

May 30, 2019

In April, the European Parliament adopted legislation aiming to establish an EU Capital Markets Union that includes disclosure requirements for financial institutions and advisers on “sustainable investments” and thus helps “channel investment to environmentally-friendly projects.”
WHO Forum Puts Pressure on Drug Companies over Pricing

May 30, 2019

At the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Forum on Medicines in April, governments and nongovernmental organizations called for policies forcing pharmaceutical companies to reveal more information about their pricing decisions, while a WHO official referred to drug pricing a human rights issue.
Industry Initiative Seeks “Sustainability” in Chemical Supply Chains

May 30, 2019

The German chemical industry sustainability initiative Chemie³ has published guidance for medium-sized chemical companies on how to ensure their supply chains meet global sustainability standards.
Shell Quits Lobbying Group over Climate Stance

May 30, 2019

CNN reports that energy giant Shell, facing pressure from activists criticizing oil and gas companies for failing to take action on global warming, has quit the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers lobby, which has not publicly supported the UN’s Paris climate deal and opposes taxing fossil fuel emissions.
Foundation Launches Global Registry of Apparel Suppliers

May 30, 2019

The C&A Foundation has launched an Open Apparel Registry as a public tool that seeks to identify every apparel factory in the world to permit nongovernmental organizations to investigate alleged violations of labor rights in the complex supply chains of fashion brands.
GRI Seeks State Push for Corporate SDG Reporting

May 30, 2019

At a recent event in Bombay, Eric Hespenheide of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) called for a greater push by governments around the world toward corporate reporting on contributions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
NGO Criticizes Banks over Confidentiality of Customer Information

May 30, 2019

The nongovernmental organization BankTrack has criticized large banks for declining, for reasons of client confidentiality, to disclose the existence of financial links to customers and projects in response to NGO demands for data on connections to human rights and environmental abuses.
US Rejects Binding UN Deal on Plastic Waste

May 15, 2019

AP reports that the US government was one of the few in the world that declined to sign a legally binding UN deal committing countries “to monitor and track movements of plastic waste outside their borders” and thus places burdens on companies to ensure accountability for the global shipping of plastics.
NGOs Seek UK Corporate “Due Diligence” Law

May 01, 2019

A group of nongovernmental organizations has published a demand for the UK government to introduce a law requiring companies to perform “human rights and environmental due diligence” relating to their operations and global supply chains or face lawsuits over their negative social and environmental impacts.
Investors, NGOs Call for “Due Diligence” Laws

April 30, 2019

Institutional investors, prompted and supported by civil society activists, recently sent a statement to lawmakers, UN agencies, and the OECD calling for the global adoption of laws and regulations requiring investors to perform “due diligence” on the environmental, social, and governance risks of their portfolios.