UN-ESG

GRI Sets out Five-year "Sustainable Development Strategy"

February 10, 2016

The Global Reporting Initiative ("GRI") has announced that it is building a five-year strategy for the advancement of corporate reporting on the implementation of the UN's agenda on "sustainable development" in business operations and on the use of data from this reporting to place more pressure on businesses to fulfill the UN's environmental and social goals.
GRI Emphasizes Role in Pushing SDGs in Business

February 10, 2016

In the context of the launch of the Global Commission on Business and Sustainable Development, an initiative of businesses, labor, and activists, at the recent World Economic Forum, the Global Reporting Initiative ("GRI") is highlighting how it has contributed to business recognition and implementation of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals ("SDGs").
NGO Publishes "Toolbox" for BHR Impact Assessments

February 05, 2016

The Danish Institute for Human Rights has published guidance for businesses to develop "impact assessments" considering how their operations might fuel violations of the UN's business and human rights ("BHR") agenda and for human rights activists to monitor the outcomes of these assessments.
NGO Criticizes Draft EU Mineral Sourcing Law

February 04, 2016

The nongovernmental organization Global Witness has warned that the voluntary, limited nature of a proposal from EU member states seeking to regulate corporate sourcing of minerals from war-torn areas of Africa, to be negotiated by EU officials in Strasbourg in February, will fail "to reduce global conflict."
PR Professionals Show Complexity of BHR "Imperatives"

February 03, 2016

Arguing that the bar for corporate compliance with the business and human rights ("BHR") agenda "is higher than ever," Lisa Manley and Judy Sandford of public relations company Cone Communications call on companies to take into account UN and activist initiatives ranging from reporting standards to climate action in plotting out their future BHR strategies.
Attorney Downplays BHR "Soft" vs. "Hard" Law Distinction

February 03, 2016

In a recent article, Anne Vanhala of Castrén & Snellman describes the status of national and supranational legislation imposing business and human rights ("BHR") reporting obligations on companies and concludes that whether or not there is a "hard law" requirement in each country, businesses "cannot opt out of human rights."
UN Agency Pushes Corporate Gender Diversity Reporting

February 02, 2016

Ten major companies have reported figures on the ratio of men to women in their workforce and in their leadership positions for inclusion in a "HeForShe Parity Report" published by UN Women.
California Investigates Exxon Statements on Climate Change

February 01, 2016

The Los Angeles Times reports that California politicians are seeking to leverage a reported investigation of energy company Exxon by the state's Attorney General Kamala Harris regarding alleged false statements the company has made to investors on the risks posed by global warming into a federal investigation of similar statements from the US energy industry.
Countries Sign OECD Agreement on Corporate Financial Scrutiny

January 29, 2016

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development ("OECD") has announced that 31 countries have signed its Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement providing for the automatic exchange of country-by-country financial, tax, and other information relating to multinational enterprises.
ISO Seeks Use of Standard in SDG Implementation

January 29, 2016

The International Organization for Standardization ("ISO") has published an interview with academics seeking to explain how corporations following the organization's standard on social responsibility furthers their implementation of the environmental and social framework of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals ("SDGs").