UN-ESG

Google Case Shows Cost of Salary Reporting

August 09, 2017

Signaling the complexity and expense involved in complying with government reporting requirements, tech giant Google recently argued in a case launched by the US Department of Labor alleging "systemic compensation disparities" between male and female employees that it would be too timely and costly to comply with the government's broad request for salary records.
Oil Company Shareholders Adopt Climate Reporting Measure

August 04, 2017

Showing the significant impact activist shareholders can have on business and human rights and climate policies at large companies, the California Public Employees' Retirement System has touted the passage by shareholders in Occidental Petroleum of its resolution requiring the energy company to report the impacts of climate change on its future business.
Research Funders Agree to WHO Reporting Rules

August 04, 2017

The UN has announced that major funders of medical research and nongovernmental organizations involved in such research have agreed to global standards issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) to publish the results of all clinical trials they fund or sponsor in a publicly available database.
UN Agent Pushes Panama to Enhance Financial Reporting

August 03, 2017

After an official visit to Panama, UN Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky called on the country's authorities to require financial institutions to exercise "due diligence" in monitoring and reporting tax evasion to ensure they are not shielding corporate and individual funds that could be used to advance economic and social human rights.
ISO Develops Global Standard on Climate Action

August 03, 2017

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has announced its development of a global standard on "greenhouse gas management" that will guide businesses and other organizations on developing a framework for action toward and public reporting on efforts to meet the UN's climate change and "sustainable development" targets.
NGO Calls for Canadian "Due Diligence" Reporting

August 02, 2017

The Shareholder Association for Research and Education, a Canadian shareholder advocacy group, has called on the Canadian government to impose on companies mandatory reporting on their "due diligence" efforts toward combating violations of the business and human rights (BHR) agenda in their supply chains, similar to requirements in the UK, EU, and other jurisdictions.
GRI Seeks "Sustainability" Reporting on Supply Chains

July 31, 2017

In a recent article, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) explains how corporations should use its "sustainability" reporting framework to increase transparency among activists and others regarding the human rights and environmental impacts of their complex, global supply chains.
GRI Launches SDGs Program in South Asia

July 31, 2017

The Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) South Asian hub and the Confederation of Indian Industry ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development have launched a two-year program pressuring businesses in the region to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) throughout their supply chains.
Reporting Initiatives Collaborate on "Sustainability" Agenda

July 31, 2017

Two major organizations that push corporate "sustainability" reporting, the Global Reporting Initiative and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, recently discussed their collaboration on initiatives allowing investors and a wide variety of other "stakeholders" access to information on companies' environmental and human rights impacts.
Insurance Network Supports Climate Risk Disclosure

July 27, 2017

The Sustainable Insurance Forum, an international network of insurance supervisors and regulators, has announced its support of recommendations from a task force of the G20 Financial Stability Board calling for the analysis and disclosure of “climate risks and opportunities” in insurance investments.