New Profiles Added to SHQ

• Verité describes its mission: To "ensure that people around the world work under safe, fair, and legal conditions." 

• Partnership for Resilience and Environmental Preparedness (PREP)  describes its activity by stating that it "…formed to address the risks and opportunities that climate change impacts pose to businesses and the communities on which they depend." 

• Climate Disclosure Standards Board states its mission is "to promote and advance climate change-related disclosure in mainstream reports through the development of a global framework for corporate reporting on climate change."

• Biovision states its mission as: "Biovision Foundation combats hunger and poverty at their roots, and is committed to the dissemination and application of ecological methods that sustainably improve living conditions in Africa whilst also conserving the environment."

• African Biodiversity Network describes itself as "a regional network of individuals and organisations seeking African solutions to the ecological and socio-economic challenges that face the continent."

• Carbon War Room lists partner organizations for certain specific issues, such as Oceana, Forum for the Future, and Blue Communications for shipping, and Environmental Defense Fund and Vote Solar on Green Cities Finance Forum. 

Sustainability & Corporate Responsibility Reporting
G&A Institute is the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) sole data partner for the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. As the data partner we monitor, analyze and database information on all Sustainability reports issued in these territories. Recent Sustainability and CR Reports issued in the USA, UK and Ireland are: 

USA

• GM Releases First Sustainability Report as New Company

ESG / Sustainability
Why Sustainability Counts for CFOs
(Wednesday January 18, 2012) Associated Profiles: MSCI Group
Source: GreenBiz - The Big Four accounting firms have taken notice. They see new opportunities in helping CFOs bring the same level of diligence to sustainability reporting that they bring to financial reporting. "Making the business case" has long... 

China report spells out "grim" climate change risks
(Wednesday - January 18, 2012) 
Source: Reuters - Global warming threatens China's march to prosperity by cutting crops, shrinking rivers and unleashing more droughts and floods, says the government's latest assessment of climate change, projecting big shifts in how the nation... 

Teen prostitution anguishes families, lawmakers
(Monday - January 16, 2012) Associated Profiles : National Association of Attorneys General 
Source: Seattle Times - Child sex trafficking is entangled in gang life and the drug trade. National and local lawmakers are wrestling with how to combat teen prostitution, but quantifying the matter is complicated. 

Apple unveils supplier names with 2012 responsibility report
(Monday - January 16, 2012) 
Source: CFO World - Apple says it stepped up environmental audits of suppliers and found significantly fewer cases of underage labor at its supplier plants last year. The findings were highlighted in Apple's annual Supplier Responsibility report... 

Ban urges more investment in sustainable development
(Friday - January 13, 2012) Associated Profiles : UN - Principles for Responsible Investing PRI 
Source: New Kerela - New York - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged investors on Thursday to lend their support to sustainable development initiatives to deal with climate change and provide efficient energy solutions around the world. 

Commentary 
21 Ways to Make Your Sustainability Report Stand Out from the Crowd
(Tuesday - January 17, 2012) 
Source: Sustainable Business Forum - Inspired by this post on Geenbiz.com entitled "I published my CSR Report. Where's my media coverage?", in which Elin Nosewski offers some tips about how to get noticed by reporters and bloggers - mainly focusing on the report... 

Sovereign Wealth Funds
British finance minister in China for yuan talks
(Tuesday - January 17, 2012) Associated Profiles : China Investment Corporation 
Source: AFP - Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne holds talks with Chinese officials Tuesday in a bid to attract investment in British infrastructure and make London a key trading hub for the yuan. 

Davos: 10 power brokers to watch at the World Economic Forum
(Sunday - January 08, 2012) Associated Profiles : Canadian Pension Plan (SPF) 
Source: Telegraph - The key people who are aiming to pull the eurozone back from the brink. 

World waits for China to open up
(Friday - January 06, 2012) Associated Profiles : China Investment Corporation 
Source: eFinancial News - China is holding its once-every-five-year state meeting on the direction of its financial markets today and tomorrow, and the decisions the country's leaders take is set to have a large impact not only on the domestic... 

Asset Managers 
Is the CSO Trapped by Location'
(Tuesday January 17, 2012) Associated Profiles : MSCI Group
Source: GreenBiz - Or, to put this question another way, is the corporate sustainability office (and its equivalents) in the wrong box in the organizational chart'... 

Europe in a 'very grave' situation: Draghi
(Monday - January 16, 2012) Associated Profiles : Thomson Reuters 
Source: National Post - Europe is an a 'very grave' economic situation, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Monday, but he added that eurozone governments are progressing well with efforts to put their finances in order 

A Crash Course in Sustainability for CFOs
(Friday - January 13, 2012) Associated Profiles : MSCI GroupSource: GreenBiz - Who better to offer some sustainability advice to CFOs than the former EVP and Global Head of an international ratings service, who delivered double-digit growth for nine years running'...
 

This is just a sample of some of the articles from this weeks SustainabilityHQ Highlights.  You can view the full Highlights by using the following links.  Sustainability | ESG, Highlights for the Week of  January 19, 2012