The June 2024 edition of the Policy Digest explores latest international updates including the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation’s new Guide to support the jurisdictional adoption and use of the IFRS S1 and S2 standards, and the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) proposed changes to labour and employment standards. In the European Union, legislation progressed on several fronts with the…
Guest Post: Three Ways AI Can Transform ESG Reporting
By: Maria Patschke, CEO of ESG Solutions, SAP Fioneer In today’s rapidly evolving landscape of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting, organisations face a myriad of challenges. With increasing regulatory oversight and the introduction of new directives such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), companies are under more pressure than ever to produce comprehensive and accurate ESG reports. These…
Three Quarters of Companies Say CSRD Leading to Increased Sustainability Integration in Business Decisions: PwC Survey
Approximately three quarters of companies preparing to report under the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) say that they are increasing the integration of sustainability into their decision-making processes, and many are also reporting a wide range of benefits, ranging to improved environmental performance to revenue growth, from sustainability reporting, according to a new survey by global professional services firm…
Mizuho, Lombard Odier Launch Sustainable Investing Partnership
Tokyo-based banking and financial services company Mizuho Financial Group and global wealth and asset manager Lombard Odier announced the launch of a new “sustainability alliance,” including agreements to partner on sustainable investment products and solutions for Japan-based clients. The new collaboration follows the launch last year by Mizuho and Lombard Odier of a private banking-focused Strategic Alliance Agreement, and, according…
EU Council Agrees on New Rules to Tackle Greenwashing in Product Green Claims
The European Council today announced today that it has reached an agreement on a series of proposals aimed at protecting consumers from greenwashing, setting requirements for companies to substantiate and verify claims and labels regarding the environmental attributes of products and services. The agreement establishes the Council’s position for negotiation with the EU Parliament on the European Commission’s Green Claims…
Sustainability-Focused Consulting and Engineering Firm RSK Raises £500 Million
Sustainable solutions provider RSK Group announced today that it has raised £500 million through a preferred equity investment, aimed at supporting the company’s ambitious growth plans, including both organic and inorganic opportunities. Founded in 1989 by CEO Alan Ryder, UK-based RSK provides environmental consulting and engineering solutions to clients across water, energy, construction and infrastructure sectors, aimed at helping companies…
EU Approves Nature Restoration Law in Dramatic Last-Minute Vote Swing by Austria
Member states in the European Council voted today to approve the long-contested Nature Restoration Law, a key piece of legislation aimed at protecting and restoring natural ecosystems, and creating a mandated target for EU countries implement measures to restore at least 20% of the EU’s land and sea areas by 2030, after a last-minute decision by Austria to drop its…
ESG Today: Week in Review
This week in ESG news: 100% of large companies expect to be required to report on sustainability, but less than a third are ready for ESG data assurance, KPMG finds; Microsoft buys nearly 1 million tons of nature-based carbon removal credits; BlackRock launches new suite of low carbon transition ETFs; GRI launches standards to report on company impact on workers;…