News

How much progress is being made on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?

• Multiple global crises continue to put the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals 'in peril', the UN says.
• Its 2023 update report shows a significant reversal of progress in key areas such as child vaccination rates and income inequality between countries.
• These challenges will be the focus of the World Economic Forum's Sustainable Development Impact Meetings on 18-22 September 2023.

Read the full article here.

Your supply chain could be full of hidden environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks, which can seriously harm your reputation and market access, as well as disrupt your supply chain and halt production.

This guide details the best practices for effective supply chain risk mitigation, including how to use ESG data from the public domain to improve your ESG program.

Learn more here.

ESG is more than sustainability.

Nasdaq has commissioned an independent study to see how 100 decision-makers in the ESG space are:

• Structuring and resourcing their sustainability teams,
• Assessing barriers to and drivers of their sustainability agendas,
• Crafting their ESG and climate risk mitigation strategies,
• Planning their technology investment plans.

In this article, you can:

1. Access more answers and insights from the respondents by downloading the full report,

2. Explore ways to elevate your ESG strategy.

Access the full article here.

“A net-zero grid will serve as the basis for climate actions across the economy"

The Government of Canada released its proposed Clean Electricity Regulations, aimed at advancing the decarbonization of the country’s electricity grid, and supporting its net zero emission climate goals.

Canada also joined a commitment last year with the U.S. to release clean energy regulations in 2023. Earlier this year, the Biden administration released a set of proposals aimed at reducing U.S. power sector emissions, including putting in place CO2 emissions controls at fossil fuel-fired power plants starting in 2030.

Read the full article here.

Guest Post by Rob Fisher, KPMG U.S. ESG Leader

Large organizations are increasingly subject to an array of ESG reporting obligations. Incentivized by grants and tax credits, these large companies are driving the move toward sustainability.

However, it’s the small and mid-sized companies that make up nearly 90% of businesses worldwide and employ almost half of North America’s workers.

Therefore, it is crucial to explore how sustainability wins from small businesses can snowball into the larger value chain.

Read the full article here.

Government of Canada Announcement

The Government of Canada announced on Monday a series of initiatives aimed at reducing government support for the fossil fuel sector, including the release of a new framework and guidelines, effective immediately, to eliminate “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies.

The government also announced that it will work to identify current public financing by 2024, and develop an implementation plan by fall 2024 to phase out public financing of the fossil fuel sector, beyond the scope of the new subsidy elimination commitment.

Read the full article here.

Half of Board Members Report Lacking Skills to Address Climate Issues: WTW/Nasdaq Survey - ESG Today

Nearly half of board members report lacking skills and expertise in their organizations for addressing climate issues, even as most acknowledge that a strong ESG strategy can lead to better financial outcomes, according to a new survey by advisory, broking and solutions company WTW and the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence.

“Board members are evolving their ESG agenda from reacting to stakeholder pressure to proactively linking ESG to business strategy. As a result, we are seeing greater interest in addressing skills and resource gaps and more emphasis on oversight of emerging risks.”
~ Kenneth Kuk, Senior Director, Work & Rewards at WTW

Read the full article here.

ESG Today Guest Post

Dr. Matthew Bell, EY Global Climate Change & Sustainability Services Leader, explains why exponential, not incremental, change is needed ahead.

Over the last two decades, sustainability has undoubtedly helped to introduce “greener” business practices, but many would argue that these have been largely incremental, from boosting energy efficiency to building trust with consumers and regulators.

As the window in which environmental disaster can be averted narrows, sustainability professionals are increasingly aware that something less incremental and more fundamental will be required.

Read the full article here.

Deloitte Survey

ESG has become a key focus area for procurement executives around the world, rising to the #2 spot of top priorities in a new survey by global professional services firm Deloitte, up from 7^th place in the prior 2021 study.

For the report, the 2023 Global Chief Procurement Officer Survey, Deloitte surveyed approximately 350 procurement leaders from more than 40 countries. Deloitte has been conducting the Global CPO survey since 2011.

Read the full article here.

Ontario on building the economy

We are building the economy of the future to benefit you today. We're investing in and connecting our electric vehicle (EV) and EV battery supply chains to create good-paying jobs across the province. EVs and the batteries that power them will be built in Ontario, by Ontario workers.

Peruse articles on Unlocking critical minerals and the Ring of Fire, Made-in-Ontario electric vehicles and batteries, Ontario's clean competitive advantage, and more.

Peruse the articles here.