The sustainability community gathered in Amsterdam last week for the GRI global conference and the rollout of the G4 version of the reporting framework. Notable sustainability thinkers from around the world convened.  Among those represented, members of ISO, IIRC, CDP, OECD, and many other international NGOs and policy organizations came together to debate the future of sustainable business and to discuss the implications of the latest evolution of reporting. While the debates made clear that we have a lot more work to do to get international agreement on how to Read the rest of this entry »

We are in the public consultation period for the fourth iteration of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).  We encourage our members to give their feedback on the framework. There are a number of enhancements to the framework that will be welcome to reporters (the abandonment of the application level rubric of assigned letter grades) and some where business stakeholders may want to provide guidance.

In the consultation process to date, one of the best surprises I had from the stakeholder feedback was the number of companies that use the GRI as a management framework even if they choose not to register their reports. Conversely, I was disappointed that so few corporate reporters have provided feedback on the G4. In the coming weeks the Center will be providing more information on the substance of the proposed changes – including proposals on reporting material impacts throughout the value chain, supply chain disclosures, and required disclosures regarding compensation of executives and workers in countries where your firm has significant operations. Read the rest of this entry »