Carbon Disclosure Project names global leaders for carbon performance & disclosure

Responsible-Investor reported yesterday that the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) released its new Carbon Performance Leadership Index (CPLI), along with its 2010 Global 500 report. The top five companies (four of which are German) are: Siemens, Deutsche Post, BASF, Bayer and Samsung (Korea); each scored a 95 or better out of 100 for carbon disclosure and performance.

48 companies are recognized by the CPLI, including Lafarge, News Corp., Philips and Praxair. On the flip side, notable companies who didn’t respond are Berkshire Hathaway and Amazon.com. The CDP commented that only 19% of the Global 500 companies are showing significant reductions in their emissions; they monitor 4,700 companies worldwide.

“We need the benchmarking tools provided by the CDP and other actors to guide investment choices, increase investment flows, and align corporate incentives for low-carbon growth,” says World Bank President Robert Zoellick (Responsible-Investor).

According to the CDP, almost 9 out of 10 companies identified “significant opportunities’ in 2010 stemming from climate change, as a result of either regulatory, physical or commercial drivers. To read the full article, please click here.

It’s interesting to note that only 19% of the Global 500 companies are showing significant reductions in their emissions – why do you think this is? Could these companies be doing more to reduce emissions? Tell us your thoughts!

New authority on integrated reporting solution to CSR?

Michael Muyot, President & Founder of CRD Analytics, posted on Justmeans yesterday about the recent announcement of a new, single global authority on integrated reporting. The International Integrated Reporting Committee (IIRC) was formed to create a universally recognized reporting framework for integrated reporting.

This past December The Prince of Wales convened a high level meeting of investors, accounting bodies, companies, decision-makers in standard setting and UN representatives. An agreement was made that the Global Reporting Initiative and the Prince’s Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) should work together with other organizations to establish an international body that oversees the creation of a universally recognized integrated reporting framework that connects financial and sustainability reporting.

The Future of CSR Reporting: Integrated Reports

The corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting community is now calling for standardized Integrated Reports – reports that combine the financial information of annual reports with the environmental, social and governance (ESG) data traditionally included in CSR reports.

Companies already producing integrated reports include American Electric Power, Philips, Novo Nordisk, BASF, Anglo Platinum and Natura.  These “one report” companies note that, among other things like supporting a sustainable society and creating a consistent internal and external message, these combined reports reduce complexity and costs.

To learn more about how putting all this corporate information into one report could help the majority of stakeholders, take a look at these articles written by several attendees of the Amsterdam Global Conference on Sustainability and Transparency, held in The Netherlands from May 26 to 28.