BrownFlynn to participate in Environmental Benchmarking Forum

Barb Brown, Principal & Co-owner, and Beth Meany, Director of Learning, will participate in a Utility Environmental Benchmarking Forum May 12-13, 2010 in Chattanooga, TN. The forum is sponsored by Utility Environmental Footprint, a voluntary partnership of utility and other environmentally-focused entities who will share lessons learned and best practices in sustainability.

The focus of the forum will be to provide the participants with benchmarks to stimulate industry environmental improvement. Participants include American Electric Power (AEP), Duke Energy, Exelon, Oncor, and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).

Barb and Beth will be featured speakers along with representatives from Shaw Industries, Navigant Consulting and Symbiotic Engineering. Other topics to be covered include environmental footprint assessment and explanation, best-in-class performance and sustainability planning.

For more information please visit www.utilityenvironmentalfootprint.com.

Course on Reporting Environmental Performance

Every year, more companies across the globe are recognizing the importance of sustainability and CSR reporting for improved reputation and financial returns from customers and investors, in addition to increasing cost savings and risk aversion.  In 2008, 84 percent of the 250 largest global companies by revenue reported on sustainability performance, 75 percent of which used the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework for their reporting process[1].

The GRI provides a standard framework and guidelines for measuring and reporting an organization’s economic, environmental, and social performance.  The GRI framework yields reliable, credible and comparable metrics through its use of performance indicators in 6 key categories: Environmental, Human Rights, Labor Practices and Decent Work, Society, Product Responsibility, and Economic.  By reporting on the indicators most relevant to their operations, organizations can present their significant environmental, social and economic impacts and opportunities. 

But at first glance, the number of indicators within each category may seem intimidating and even confusing.  To help organizations understand what these indicators mean, as well as where and how to start their reporting process, BrownFlynn Learning provides its signature course, “The GRI Process”, and has recently partnered with Symbiotic Engineering to offer a comprehensive course on GRI’s 30 Environmental Indicators.

On February 11, 2010, BrownFlynn Learning will complement its training session for “The GRI Process” (February 9-10) with the one-day course focused on the GRI Environmental Performance (EN) Indicators.  Environmental engineers (bios below) will help participants garner an in-depth understanding of the standard protocols and methodologies for setting goals and for tracking and reporting environmental performance toward those goals.  Instructors will delve into how the environmental indicators relate to benchmarking, reporting GHG inventories and life cycle analysis, and addressing problems faced by participants.