The paper articulates common reporting metrics for sustainable value creation for companies reporting on ESG performance.
By Paul A. Davies, Paul M. Dudek, Ryan J. Maierson, and Kristina S. Wyatt
On September 22, 2020, the International Business Council (IBC) of the World Economic Forum (WEF), in collaboration with Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC, published a white paper, Measuring Stakeholder Capitalism: Towards Common Metrics and Consistent Reporting of Sustainable Value Creation (the Report), with the purpose of establishing consistency and comparability for companies reporting on their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. The Report is the culmination of a process that began with the WEF’s issuance of a consultation draft, Toward Common Metrics and Consistent Reporting of Sustainable Value Creation, in January 2020. Continue Reading
On 17 September 2020, the European Commission (Commission) presented its 2030 Climate Target Plan, which calls for a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction target of at least 55%, compared to 1990 levels; sets out required actions for a number of sectors; and identifies key changes to be made to existing legislation.
On September 23, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed 
A group of leading sustainability and integrated reporting organisations — including the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the Climate Disclosure Standard Board (CDSB), the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), and the Sustainability Accounting Board (SASB) — have pledged to work together on the harmonisation of sustainability standards. In the document, which was published on 11 September 2020, the organisations commit to collaborating together by providing joint market guidance on sustainability standards while also building a shared vision of how such standards could complement generally accepted financial principles.
On 16 September 2020, Ursula von der Leyen, delivered her first state of the union address since taking over the presidency of the European Commission (EC) in December 2019. The speech covered numerous topics and presented specific proposals addressing some of the most pressing issues the EU faces today, including ESG topics such as climate change, sustainable finance, and social matters. Throughout the address, the EC President called for change by design, not by destruction. 
On September 9, 2020, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC’s) Climate-Related Market Risk Subcommittee of the Market Risk Advisory Committee (MRAC) published 
On August 31, 2020, the US Department of Labor (DOL) 
On 27 August 2020, the European Commission (the Commission) launched a public consultation on a possible proposal on substantiating green claims about products or services. This follows on from the Commission’s Inception Impact Assessment Roadmap on potential regulation of green claims. The consultation period for this Roadmap closed on 31 August 2020, so the Commission is already moving ahead with the consultation on the proposal itself. This initiative is another step toward meeting the objectives identified in the European Green Deal, pursuant to which the Commission committed itself to making the EU climate neutral by 2050. 
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