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Business leaders report points out the added value of sustainable development reporting

Published 08 January 2003 - Updated 29 January 2010
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On 6 january, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) released a report explaining the added value of sustainable development reporting and providing tools to produce such reports.

The new WBCSD report on sustainable development reporting, entitled "Striking the balance", explains why and how sustainable development reporting can help companies to achieve greater accountability and transparency. It is designed to encourage companies to provide a rationale, the business case, and tools to produce such reports.

This report, co-authored by three industry leaders (Bert Heemskerk, Rabobank Group CEO, Pasquale Pistorio, STMicroelectronics CEO, and Martin Scicluna, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Managing Partner) covers three main areas:

  • a step-by-step guide to help companies to improve or develop their reports;
  • recommendations on how to bridge the gap between the information needs of the financial community and the reporting practices of companies;
  • insight into the debate on the standardization of reporting formats.

 

Next steps: 
As of mid-January, the report will be supplemented by an online‘reporting portal’ that will provide guidance on sustainable development reporting and showcase reporting practices from about 50 WBCSD members.

 

Background: 
Companies are faced with growing pressure, among others from the sustainability rating agencies, to be transparent on their performance as regards sustainable development. Social and environmental reporting is consequently growing rapidly and companies are in need of tools and guidelines for such a reporting. The practice is dominated by large corporations with a high public profile, but it is also spreading to SMEs, public authorities and NGOs.

 

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