WRI: Almost 50 countries have reached peak emissions
As the world’s nations meet in Bonn for the 23rd annual “conference of the parties” (COP) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, a new study could give businesses more clarity on how quickly they should ramp up their climate action efforts. The World Resources Institute (WRI) has found that 49 countries have already reached “peak emissions” and estimated that number will increase to 57 countries by 2030, representing 60% of global emissions. WRI says the trend is “encouraging”, but warns that such progress is insufficient to meet the goals set at COP 21 in Paris – which require global emissions to peak by 2020. (Triple Pundit)
Meanwhile, the global director of WRI’s Sustainable Finance Centre, Leonardo Martinez Diaz, has said that sustainability departments should use the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) to engage board members and finance teams on climate change. He said that analysing climate change as a business risk, in line with TCFD recommendations on scenario analysis, would help it become a “mainstream component of core strategic discussions”. (edie)
Paradise Papers leak reveals secrets of the world elite’s hidden wealth
The world’s biggest businesses, heads of state and global figures in politics, entertainment and sport have been found to have sheltered their wealth in secretive tax havens. The details come from a leak of 13.4 million files obtained by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung and shared by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The Papers notably reveal that Twitter and Facebook received hundreds of millions of dollars in investments that can be traced back to Russian state financial institutions. They also detail aggressive tax avoidance by multinational corporations, including Apple and Nike, as well as the offshore arrangements of wealthy public figures, including US cabinet members, such as commerce secretary Wilbur Ross; the Queen; a senior adviser to Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau; and the rock-star and anti-poverty campaigner Bono.
The revelations come as an upcoming study is to reveal how multinationals have shifted €600 billion of profits offshore in 2016. Last month, a report found that the vast majority of listed companies have failed to comprehensively report on their tax arrangements in line with OECD recommendations. (Guardian)
Employees
Report: Gender pay gap risks serious damage to employers’ reputations
British employers face a serious threat to their reputations from mandatory gender pay gap reporting, new research by public relations firm Golin has revealed. Based on the survey of more than 1,000 senior professionals, the study found that 84% believed the reporting requirements would damage the reputation of organisations, while 77% said they were likely to lose staff once the pay data was published. In addition, 39% of female respondents said they would consider leaving if their company reported a significant pay gap. By 4 April 2018, UK organisations with 250 or more staff will have to publish their pay gap figures. Responding to the study, Sam Smethers, Chief Executive of equality campaign group the Fawcett Society, said companies making the “greatest progress will develop an evidence-based action plan… from flexible working by default to supporting fathers in the workplace”. (Personnel Today)
Read more:Peter Truesdale says companies must prepare a convincing story to accompany their gender pay gap numbers. Gender pay: You have been warned.
Animal Welfare
Nestlé plans to use cage-free eggs for all food products by 2025
Nestlé, the world’s largest packaged foods company, has pledged to use only eggs from hens that live outside of cages by 2020 in Europe and the US, and by 2025 elsewhere, as a response to pressing animal welfare concerns. In a statement, the Swiss firm stated that over 40% of its eggs were already from cage-free sources in parts of Europe, but said it was “committed to bringing about positive change” in other regions. Some of Nestlé’s rivals, including Kraft Heinz, Conagra, Mondelez and Sodexo, have already made similar pledges, while some governments are considering laws aimed at requiring greater room for laying hens to roam. In California, hens, pigs and calves must be able to stand up and lie down in quarters where they can fully extend their limbs. This year, animal rights group Humane Society of the United States introduced a new measure in the state that would require all eggs to come from cage-free birds. (Reuters)
Corporate Reputation
TripAdvisor apologises for deleting review detailing rape at Mexican resort
The travel website TripAdvisor has apologised to a Texas woman for repeatedly deleting her review of a Mexican Iberostar resort that detailed her rape there by a security guard. The apology follows an investigation by the Journal Sentinel of Milwaukee that revealed the 2010 event as well as other accounts by female travellers who said the website also removed their warnings. According to the company’s statement, the post was deleted in 2010 because of a previous policy, changed “a few years ago”, that required all language “to be G-rated”. TripAdvisor also ensured all reviews mentioning rapes and assaults have remained and said it was introducing a notification “badge” on its business listings to warn travellers if there had been “health and safety or discrimination issues” reported at the business. (NY Times)
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