UN-ESG

G20 Panel Calls for Link Between Climate, Executive Pay

January 24, 2017

According to a report from the G20 group of countries' Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures led by former New York Mayor and climate activist Michael Bloomberg, energy companies should adopt policies informing shareholders how they are linking executive and board member pay to the management of climate change risks facing their industry.
UK Businesses Support Report on Fulfilling SDGs

January 23, 2017

A group of British companies have published a letter supporting a Business & Sustainable Development Commission report asserting that government measures focused on achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will contribute to massive economic growth and create a world that is "comprehensively sustainable."
NGO Pushes Scrutiny of "Modern Slavery" Statements

January 19, 2017

The nongovernmental organization Ethical Trading Initiative has called on companies to place their "Modern Slavery Statements," made under a recently passed UK law mandating corporate reporting on forced labor, in a "central registry" maintained by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre for scrutiny by civil society.
GRI, IIRC Establish "Integrated Reporting" Group

January 19, 2017

The Global Reporting Initiative and the International Integrated Reporting Council have formed a "Corporate Leadership Group on integrated reporting" to communicate with companies on how to navigate the "sometimes confusing landscape" of global corporate reporting standards by integrating their disclosure on financial and "sustainability" issues.
GRI, UN Form Group on Corporate SDG Reporting

January 19, 2017

The Global Reporting Initiative explains how it is forming a group of "leading businesses, reporting experts and data users" in cooperation with the UN Global Compact to develop principles of corporate reporting on the fulfillment of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and permit businesses to "show leadership in their SDG performance."
GRI Examines Status of Human Rights Reporting

January 11, 2017

The Global Reporting Initiative and two academic institutes have issued a report examining the progress of companies in the mining, energy, and financial sectors on fulfilling the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights by publicly disclosing their human rights impacts.
Activist Pressure Yielded Fossil Fuel Divestment in 2016

January 04, 2017

UN officials and environmental activists are celebrating a new report from the investment advising firm Arabella indicating that, under pressure from the growing "divest" movement led by nongovernmental organizations and global institutions, investment firms managing approximately $5.2 trillion have pledged to phase out their financing of fossil fuel companies.
UN Targets Sports Organizations on Climate Pledge

January 04, 2017

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is calling on sports organizations and other companies to sign up to the UN's Climate Neutral Now Initiative, under which they pledge to measure, publicly report, and offset their greenhouse gas emissions to achieve the goals of the UN climate deal agreed in Paris in 2015.
UN Expands Gender Certification Scheme to Jamaica

January 02, 2017

The UN Development Programme is seeking to expand its Gender Equality Seal Certification Programme to the Caribbean by asking Jamaican businesses to sign on to a pledge to reduce "gender gaps" in their operations.
Companies Push for Insurance Based on Climate Projections

December 30, 2016

A report from a coalition of 29 insurance companies, called ClimateWise, calls on insurers to close what they say is a growing gap between the current value of property insurance and the projected cost of catastrophic impacts of climate change and pushes governments to do more to combat the effects of global warming.