The implementation of this mandate was delayed amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Some developers set their own biodiversity net-gain targets out for some or all developments, but others have been waiting for the mandate.

This week, the Department for Food, the Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) has confirmed that the mandate will come into effect for all large domestic, industrial, commercial and mixed-use sites from November 2023. It applies in England only.

The mandate will not come into effect for smaller sites until 2024, with Defra having heard evidence that local authorities and very small developers, in particular, are not yet prepared for the mandate due to the fallout of the pandemic. This is a move that has disappointed some environmental groups.

Regardless of site size, developers will need to deliver – and prove they have delivered – a minimum uplift of 10% in the amount of biodiversity at the site, relative to its biodiversity prior to their intervention.

To secure planning permission for any development, developers will need to create a biodiversity gain plan to be submitted with their planning application. They have to guarantee management of the biodiversity at the site for a minimum of 30 years. Where habitat is impacted within the project boundary, developers will need to replace it with habitat of equal or better biodiversity, and of equal or greater size.

The Government will permit, in some cases, the delivery of net-gain through improvements off of the site. Developers will need to purchase credits before commencing work at the site and, in this case, the Environment Bank assumes liability for biodiversity management for the 30-year period. The credit scheme is still in development and Defra has stated that this approach should be used “as a last resort”. Funding raised through credits will be invested in habitat creation schemes spearheaded by the Government.

In addition to confirming the timelines for implementation and rules on onsite and offsite work, Defra announced £16m of funding to help expand and upskill planning teams at local authorities. Councils will be invited to apply for a share of the funding in the coming weeks.

Last month, the UK’s post-Brexit environment watchdog, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP), warned that the nation is on course to miss every key nature and environmental policy target. It cited particular concerns about species abundance.

Defra subsequently published an updated Environmental Improvement Plan, setting out key short-term and mid-term targets on issues including biodiversity, water quality and soil quality. There is debate about how much of the Plan is new (both in terms of funding and targets), but Defra maintains that it is “pioneering”.

Green economy response

Responding to Defra’s decisions, the UK Green Building Council’s director of communications, policy and places Simon McWhirtier said they are “broadly encouraging” and in line with the sector’s advice.

“Decisions to include brownfield sites, to legislate to further protect irreplaceable natural habitats, and to prevent duplicating the recording of biodiversity net-gain and carbon offsets will be welcomed by our members,” he elaborated.

“However, by extending the transition period for small sites until April 2024, the Government risks removing up to 100,000 developments a year from the scope of biodiversity regulations – impeding nature’s recovery instead of supporting the industry with the clear, stable demand called for by Chris Skidmore MP to secure green growth.

“The Government has also missed the opportunity to outline how biodiversity net gain could develop into the broader concept of ‘environmental net gain’ that would integrate and deliver the wider social benefits of nature-positive built environments.”

Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove has stated that the biodiversity net-gain requirement will complement the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill. The Bill is currently in the Committee Stage in the House of Lords.

Related article: Can Defra end its ‘culture of delay’ in 2023?

SCROLL DOWN TO TAKE THE SURVEY

The 10-minute online survey is primarily targeted at in-house sustainability/CSR/energy leaders and managers who hold some level of responsibility for their organisation’s strategy in these areas. This year’s survey has a particular focus on leadership and skills, and on sustainable finance – two critical areas for the future of green business.

The results of the survey will be curated into a full report which will be published as part of edie’s Business Leadership Month – a bumper month of thought-leadership discussions, exclusive interviews and authoritative reports, all dedicated to dedicated to empowering, connecting and celebrating the individuals and teams who are changing business, for good. You can read last year’s Business Leadership report here.

As an added incentive, all survey respondents have the opportunity to be entered into a prize draw to receive a free pass to edie 23 – the premier annual event for sustainability and net-zero leaders taking place on 1-2 March – along with the edie Awards ceremony which takes place on 30 March.

All individual responses will be kept anonymous.

This survey will close on the evening of Wednesday 22 February.

The 2023 Sustainable Business Leadership Survey

With this in mind, edie recently hosted a webinar and masterclass on the theme of ‘supply chain sustainability: Moving from risk to resilience”.

–CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE WEBINAR AND MASTERCLASS ON-DEMAND–

These online events, hosted in association with BSI and Carbon Quota, initially look place on Wednesday 15 February 2023 and are now available on demand. Also participating were expert speakers from Ibstock Brick and Golden Agri Resources (GAR).

During the events, speakers explored why engaging suppliers is crucial to delivering on net-zero carbon and biodiversity commitments. They also explored the evolution on best-practice methods for identifying and rectifying human rights abuses in supply chains and enhancing social sustainability in key supplier regions more broadly.

Here, edie rounds up nine of the top tips provided by expert speakers during this recent webinar and masterclass.

1. Start with an appropriate common goal

The supply chain is often the part of a business’s value chain where the greatest deal of negative impacts occur. CDP estimates, for example, that the average large multinational corporation will generate 11.4 times more emissions in its supply chains than its operations. Supply chains can also be hotspots for waste, water use, deforestation, modern slavery and child labour, depending on the sector.

Whether it’s on emissions, forests, nature, human rights or another topic, speakers emphasised the importance of having a common goal for your business and its suppliers to work towards.

Ibstock Brick, for example, has a 2040 net-zero target for operations and is aiming for a net-zero value chain before 2050. The firm’s group sustainability manager Michael McGowan said this target was not only designed with binding climate targets in the UK in mind, but with the scale of ambition and pace of action across the building materials value chain.

2. Assess your data baseline and plan to improve your data

As one would expect in a discussion on emissions in the supply chain, the importance of collecting high-quality data and interpreting it effectively was emphasised during the webinar.

Carbon Quota’s co-founder Nathan Tiller discussed how, at the beginning of a data collection journey, the process may seem overwhelming and you may be asked questions you don’t have answers to.

“What it comes down to is focusing on what you can do… everybody has to find a place to start,” he said.

Tiller walked attendees through Carbon Quota’s levels of data quality. Most firms, he said, start with using at least some spend-based proxy figures. He urged listeners “not to spend too much time here” and prioritise collecting more specific data, to reach a higher level of integrity. For example, more specific data could be calculated using factors such as where manufacturing occurs and how much energy is expended using the process, as data on the emissions associated with the energy grid is publicly available through organisations like the International Energy Agency.

The aim from here is to use digital platforms to collect actual supplier-specific data to achieve more granularity, starting with Tier 1 suppliers. Tiller explained that many larger businesses are reaching this stage on their data journey at the moment, and it will likely be some time before they have specific data from a range of suppliers below Tier 1.

3. Beware of ‘data fatigue’

As more end-user businesses request data from suppliers, the question arises as to how these suppliers – often small businesses with tight margins – should allocate the time and resources to respond. Dilemmas also arise at end-user businesses when suppliers report data in different ways and at different speeds.

To this latter challenge, Tiller noted: “Your job is to keep up with the fastest, and pull along the slowest…. You have to work with the differences that exist. Even with them, you can make something of it.”

To the former, Tiller recommended the creation of a “very simple” questionnaire for end-user businesses just starting out, with four or five questions relating to your most material topics.

GAR’s chief sustainability communications officer Anita Neville similarly urged companies in the same sector, for example consumer goods, to collaborate to create a single template for sustainability disclosures questionnaires.

Acknowledging that such a streamlining of this process is likely a way off, Neville said end-users and larger suppliers can “seek to minimize workloads” by “creating a common language” across the supply chain. In this way, different stakeholders understand what is being asked of them. In GAR’s space, palm oil, a shared language between manufacturers, traders and growers is important. None of these groups are homogenous, Neville emphasised, with some growing happening at scale but much of the industry accounted for by smallholders working on two hectares or less.

4. Start in your ‘hotspots’

Once you have data beyond the basic level of spend-based proxy numbers, you can start to identify which suppliers contribute most to things like your emissions, water or waste footprint.

Starting with these suppliers, Ibstock Brick’s McGowan explained, can be beneficial. It prevents efforts from being spread too thinly and it enables deeper, more focused collaborations. From these collaborations, learnings can then be rolled out elsewhere.

Within the last 18 months, Ibstock has completed a materiality assessment covering its Scope 3 emissions from suppliers. It revealed that around 60% of these emissions come from just 40 suppliers, so it has opted to prioritise work on climate mitigation here. These are mainly suppliers of goods and services.

GAR’s Neville also spoke of “the value of doing, then sharing”. In this, she meant that larger players can either implement innovative solutions in their own operations or at their largest suppliers, before “customizing” them and providing them to smaller suppliers.

5. Meet suppliers face-to-face

All webinar speakers agreed that creating sustainable, resilient supply chains depends as much on communication and collaboration as it does on good data. GAR’s Neville described transparency as “the start of the journey, not the end”.

“Trust trumps everything,” she said. £You can have the best tech, the best systems, but if you don’t have relationships with suppliers – trust which you generate by being able to talk in their language – then you really can’t get very far.”

“Through the pandemic, we pivoted as much as we could, but we couldn’t do any field work. We were worried that this might stall our progress.”

Ibstock Brick’s McGowan also spoke of the importance of in-person meetings and not “hiding behind” digital communications. His business held its second supply chain engagement day with a climate focus late last year and 26 suppliers were represented.

He elaborated@ “Our [digital] system is at the very early stages – we’re just building it and it’s not mature yet. But net-zero won’t happen unless we collaborate and engage and speak 1:1 with our suppliers. Supplier engagement days are vital. We can have the best [digital] system in the world, but the most important thing is direct communication and collaboration.”

6. Avoid a top-down approach

Building on discussions regarding face-to-face meetings, GAR’s Neville emphasised that suppliers should be collaborated with – not talked at. Trust, she said, will not be built by larger end-users simply telling suppliers what to do. Suppliers want to know the benefits of the work, for their buyers and themselves. They also want to know how they will be supported through the process, with any training, tools or finance.

She said: “If you can start from the intention of being helpful in return for data, emphasise that this is about strengthening the relationship, offering assistance, then that goes a long way.”

GAR regularly hosts supplier conferences on specific topics but also provides deeper 1:1 coaching sessions for suppliers struggling with issues they feel they cannot overcome themselves.

7. Measure and communicate risk and opportunity

Much of the webinar focused on reducing emissions in the supply chain and other environmental impacts. Failure to take these actions doubtless brings moral and reputational risks for businesses, but could also cause financial risk, which is not always well-understood.

In order to build the business case for risk mitigation – and for investment in resilience-building initiatives such as climate adaptation – McGowan explained that Ibstock Brick assesses the potential disruptions, likelihood of risk, potential financial impact and recovery time of key climate risks. It covers physical, input-related, and regulatory risks, plus risks related to external stakeholders.

It also looks at the opportunities of taking action to prevent these risks, such as longer-term agreements with suppliers, or chances for innovation or skills development.

8. Challenge your assumptions on social inequality and human rights abuses

After the webinar, we hosted a 30-minute masterclass on tackling modern slavery in supply chains with BSI. Representing them on this session was BSI Knowledge Solutions’ director of sectors and standards Anne Hayes.

Hayes started by defining modern slavery and emphasising that, at present, more people are living as slaves than ever have at any other point in history. At least 24.9 million people globally are thought to be in forced labour, the majority of which are women and children.

Hayes called this “an issue that is part of our lives and we cannot ignore”. She highlighted that, while some sectors and parts of their supply chains are well-known as human rights risk hotspots, professionals should dig deeper and look into precisely where risk is and who is impacted. For example, the UK Government has stated that British nationals account for more than one-third of modern slaves in the UK, whereas the assumption is that the most-represented groups are migrants.

Hayes also noted that companies can no longer use the excuse of not being in direct control of supplier practices, arguing that “nobody in the UK escapes the shadow of modern slavery overseas”. Businesses have responsibilities in their organisations, across their supply chains and in the wider operating environment under international frameworks and, increasingly, under national laws.

9. Acknowledge that human rights issues have environmental impacts

There is often said to be an increasing knowledge of the links between environmental issues and social issues, but the link between human rights abuses and environmental harm is not always acknowledged.

“This is not just about the social justice factor – modern slavery does impact the environment,” Hays explained. “Combatting slavery can help to protect the environment, as some environmentally damaging practices will cease to be profitable without slave labour”.

One practice that she highlighted as an example was the clearance of mangrove forests in the Bay of Bengal. Slaves are forced to cut down forests to make way for fish farms. This releases carbon and also reduces coastal resilience to extreme weather. Then, in time, the industrial fish farming harms the nutrient balance of the waters.

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are a valuable tool for many businesses to link impacts and targets in social and environmental issues. Any business claiming alignment with the Goals should be advocating, as per Goal 8, for an end to modern slavery by 2025.

–CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE WEBINAR AND MASTERCLASS ON-DEMAND–

Skidmore, Polman and Wathuti will be joined by the likes of Pukka Herbs’ chief executive Anuradha Chugh and Committee on Climate Change Chair Lord Deben for edie 23, which takes place at the state-of-the-art 133 Houndsditch events venue in London on 1-2 March 2023.

Force of Nature Founder and leading youth climate activist Clover Hogan, Leon Restaurants Co-Founder Henry Dimbleby, Earth on Board Founder Philippe Joubert and We Mean Business Co-Founder Steve Howard are also confirmed among the high-level speaker line-up.

Sustainability and energy representatives from the likes of Google, Patagonia, innocent Drinks and Sky will also take to the stage alongside NGOs, climate activists and other inspirational speakers to provide delegates with rousing and insightful discussions to empower long-lasting change.

An evolution of the multi-award-winning Sustainability Leaders Forum, edie 23 is the premier annual event dedicated to achieving environmental and social transformations through courageous business leadership. edie 23 will offer up two full days of keynotes, panels, best-practice case studies and audience-led discussions across three themed stages – Strategy, Net-Zero and Action.

These sessions will be delivered alongside an array of interactive and immersive event features, including an informal “mess up night” to discuss some of the times that sustainability initiatives didn’t go to plan, a series of “#SustyTalk Live” sofa discussions, and a “25th Birthday Party” to celebrate edie’s 25th anniversary as the UK’s industry-leading sustainable business media brand.

We are also partnering with leading mental health and wellbeing platform MyMynd to help you manage your mental health and prioritise the wellbeing and energy of yourself and your colleagues. MyMynd will offer group workshops and private, one-to-one consultations during the event.

The event is underpinned by a pioneering Mission Statement. The Statement includes an industry-leading commitment to speaker diversity and inclusivity, a strict no-greenwashing policy and a laser-like focus on sparking new ideas and trackable actions through the event content.

edie 23 is expected to be at full capacity, with more than 600 business leaders, board-level executives, sustainability, ESG and net-zero decision-makers, finance, communications and procurement experts, NGOs, academics, consultants, tech providers, and entrepreneurs expected to attend the event in March.

Find out more about the event here and secure your place here.  

The Council has today (21 February) named Hirigoyen’s successor, selecting Smith Mordak, the current director of sustainability and physics at Buro Happold.

In a statement, the Council said that Mordak “brings a wealth of industry knowledge, deep technical expertise, first-hand insights as a longstanding member of UKGBC, and plenty of fresh ideas to the role, at this critical moment in time”. It added that they are passionate about delivering a “regenerative economy”.

Mordak holds Bachelor’s degrees in architecture and engineering with maths, plus other qualifications in fields including retrofit. They have been working in the UK’s built environment sector for more than a decade, holding roles in the private sector and in the public sector at the Greater London Authority.

Mordak has been the director of sustainability and physics at Buro Happold since spring 2020 and also holds additional roles at the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity; as a nationally elected councillor at RIBA, and on the editorial board of the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy. They have previously written columns advocating for built environment sustainability in The Guardian, Dezeen, the Architect’s Journal and RIBA Journal.

The chair of the board of trustees at UKGBC, Sunand Prasad, said Mordak “combines a deep, science-based and systemic understanding of the climate emergency with a clear-sighted, principled and pragmatic approach for what needs to be done in response.”

Prasad added: “From founding an innovative, award-winning design practice to helping a major international consultancy, [Mordak] has consistently shown imagination and determination in achieving change. Along the way, they have been active in significant industry initiatives to achieve an equitable and lasting transformation of the built environment to a sustainable and regenerative model.”

Hirigoyen will step down on 1 June. She has stated that she is handing over the post “with great confidence and the utmost respect”.

Also on 1 June, the current director of communications, policy and places at the UKGBC – Simon McWhirtier – will move into a deputy chief executive role.

“I’m thrilled to have this opportunity to work with the amazing team, trustees, and membership at UKGBC,” Mordak said.

“I’m looking forward to building on the charity’s extraordinary body of work and Julie’s inimitable legacy. We live in existentially challenging times. Our actions over the next few years will have an outsized impact on the Earth’s ecosystems and on many generations to come. I’m honoured that I’ll be playing my part in this crucial period as part of this powerful, change-making coalition.”

Almost half of those polled (45%) said they would consider resigning from a role if their employer’s values were at odds with their own. And three-quarters said they look for publicly available environmental and social commitments when considering a new job, as a “key factor”.

The findings chime with recent research into so-called ‘climate quitting’ in the UK workforce by KPMG. KPMG found that almost half (46%) of people look at the environmental impacts of a business before choosing to file a job application, with 20% of office workers likely to turn down a job if action here was lacking.

In short, it would seem that the so-called ‘great resignation’ is not attributable to people not wanting to work at all. Instead, people only want to work for employers that treat workers, communities, society and the environment well.

Commenting on this trend ahead of her appearance at edie 23 in London next week (scroll down for more details), Force of Nature founder and youth climate activist Clover Hogan says: “People are definitely aware of – and skeptical of – token actions. People feel really disillusioned sometimes when they’re given a list of 10 things to do in their personal life, starting with recycling. Those actions are super important from a values perspective, but they matter little if we’re not advocating for more systemic change.

“Companies, with the best intentions, will hold an employee sustainability day focused on recycling in the office, for example. I think people are tired of that. They want their values to be reflected in the way a company runs, the way it creates products, offers services, creates value. So, the best thing a company can do is turn that lens back on itself and ask what it needs to change strategically.”

As well as providing teacher training, student training and public climate cafes, Force of Nature describes part of its work as ‘challenging business-as-usual’ mindsets. Hogan is one of many of its members trained in advising business leaders on sustainability. These people provide services such as youth advisory boards and consulting (and are often described as ‘consulting activists’).  They are a global team, including young people from some of the places in the global south most impacted by climate change, and places in the global north grappling with challenges such as more frequent and intense wildfires, or water scarcity.

Force of Nature’s services are provided to businesses that have been working on sustainability for years, right down to those still struggling to gain boardroom buy-in to set out initial work to catch up with their industry peers. In any case, hearing new voices – voices that often invoke similarities with professionals’ own children or grandchildren – can serve as a push for heightened ambition.

“When the business case for sustainability does not work, when the terrifying headlines do not work, sometimes, it takes a dinner table conversation… the intergenerational piece is so important,” explains Hogan.

“We can all afford to disrupt our perspectives and challenge the ways we the world. I think anyone in a climate bubble is entertaining some level of denial, myself included. It’s important to expose ourselves to new perspectives and ideas, to recognise that we are not going to solve the problem with the same thinking that created it.”

Empowering change-makers

Hogan reflects on how she and her team have, through work in the private sector, often seen leaders who are used to “talking down” to staff, telling them what to do. Recommended actions are often to be taken within their personal life rather than within their day job. This can be interpreted as condescending and staff frequently question the true impact.

When senior staff do try and lead by example, Hogan says, they often take tokenistic steps. She recounts hearing a chief executive of a large business in a high-carbon sector bragging about turning lights off and taking the stairs, not the lift, to save energy. All the while, this business had no public plans to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement.

Force of Nature advocates the development of bold pledges, aligned with climate science and environmental science as a minimum. It also provides guidance on backing these commitments with robust delivery plans, covering investment, technology changes, process changes and, crucially, changes to company culture.

The idea is that businesses will need to identify the passions, skillsets and influence points that their staff have, and leverage these, to meet goals they have never met before. This identifying process is similar to that offered up through a publicly available quiz from Force of Nature, aimed at helping individuals determine what kind of change-maker they are.

“Involving employees at this level is incredibly important and also incredibly exciting,” Hogan argues.

From identifying how staff members can best be change-makers and presenting this as an opportunity for staff – not an extra item on the to-do list –  businesses can then begin rethinking job titles, role descriptions and even team structures. For example, edie recently explored Grosvenor Property UK’s decision to create a sustainability and innovation team and will shortly be delving in to why Futerra has appointed staff as ‘solutionists’.

Opportunities for training and upskilling may also be identified through this process. New teams may warrant upskilled staff, or the process may encourage staff to request information on a career change or taking on additional responsibilities. The key factor, Hogan notes, is creating an environment in which staff are able to co-create solutions and feel comfortable discussing their concerns, strengths and personal passions.

Human touch

It bears noting that, despite extensive research into climate quitting, it remains to be seen whether talk will match action – especially amid the cost-of-living crisis.

The UK Government’s latest quarterly public attitudes tracker on climate and energy was published in December 2022, revealing consistent levels of climate-related concern despite increasing concern relating to personal finances. Just 3% of the 20,000+ adults polled said they were “not at all concerned” about climate issues.

Almost half (45%) said they are “very concerned”, but time will tell whether levels drop as the cost-of-living crisis rolls on, and with a Prime Minister in place who has not made any notable noise about climate in his post yet.

For Hogan, now is a crucial moment to ensure that workers – and the general public more broadly – appreciate that “climate isn’t something abstract, happening far away”.

Hogan says: “I think eco-anxiety is omnipresent and is increasing, especially in young people. I also think it is, to a degree, quite a narrow term that can have its limitations.

“From my perspective, anxiety about being able to pay your energy bill, because we’re all caught in a fossil fuel economy, also relates.

“I know a lot of people are anxious about whether they’ll be able to put food on the table and, again, we must relate this back to the decisions that policymakers are taking that keep us ensnared in this old-school system.

“Trying to get that kind of big picture thinking at scale is very different… when people are in a mindset of survival.

“I think one of the biggest flaws of the ‘sustainability’ movement for decades is that, for decades, it has talked about nature, biodiversity, climate. And the people talking about those things were generally white, middle class and otherwise privileged. We still see a lot of this.

“And it completely ignored the very human elements, the intersections between gender and climate, for example, or racial and social justice and climate. With the energy and cost-of-living crisis in the UK and abroad, this is a really important moment to help people make the connection.”

Understanding the scale of the problem, Hogan acknowledges, can cause eco-anxiety in and of itself. The important thing, she says, is to ensure that, if feelings such as anger, frustration, anxiety and grief arise, they are not left to sit and turn into feelings of powerlessness, overwhelm, doom or even denial.

Instead, Hogan says, it is important to use these feelings as “catalysts for action”. She points to “connection and community” – at work and outside of work – as factors that can help to turn short-lived “sparks” of emotion into action that ensures.

Additionally, she emphasises the importance of every person involved in sustainability work clarifying their values, their passions, their skills and the difference they want to make in the world. This can ensure they focus accordingly, maximising their impact while minimising the risk that they spread themselves too thinly.

Hear from Clover Hogan at edie 23

Taking place in London on 1-2 March 2023, edie’s biggest annual event has undergone a major revamp to become edie 23, with a new name, new venue, multiple new content streams and myriad innovative event features and networking opportunities.

edie 23 will take place at the state-of-the-art 133 Houndsditch conference venue in central London. Held over two floors, the event will offer up two full days of keynotes, panels, best-practice case studies and audience-led discussions across three themed stages – Strategy, Net-Zero and Action.

Click here for full information and to book your ticket.

Clover Hogan will be speaking on Day Two of edie 23 (2 March), providing a keynote speech on courageous business leadership for sustainability on the Strategy Stage from 3pm.

Other speakers on the Strategy Stage for edie 23 include former COP26 High Level Climate Action Champion Nigel Topping; youth climate activist Mikaela Loach; food strategy review author Henry Dimbleby and Temasek’s chief sustainability officer Steve Howard. Don’t miss your chance to attend. 

That’s because, traditionally, sustainability metrics haven’t been seen as being that important to the core business and as a result have not been subject to the same levels of scrutiny and control applied to companies’ financial information. This is the year that will change.

Regulators tighten rules

Over the last 12 months, regulators are not only getting more specific in their expectations; they are also moving from voluntary to mandatory disclosure:

• The UK now requires large companies to report on their climate-related risks in line with the recommendations of the global Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
• The EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) means that companies will be required to publish detailed information on sustainability performance.
• The Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) is strengthening disclosure requirements on net-zero plans.
• The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed rule changes that would require climate-related disclosures.
• At COP 27 in November 2022, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for greater accountability and verification in a bid to end greenwashing.

Investors expect more

Increasingly, investors are looking to companies’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) metrics before making funding decisions – and are often finding them lacking. This was highlighted in a recent EY Global survey, which found that:

• 99% of investors utilise companies’ ESG disclosures as a part of their investment decision-making process.
• 76% of investors believe that companies are highly selective in what information they provide to investors, raising concerns about greenwashing.
• 80% of investors said that too many companies fail to properly articulate the rationale for long-term investments in sustainability.

Stakeholders must be satisfied

Companies have become increasingly alert to the way non-financial issues can impact their key stakeholders, including employees, customers and suppliers as well as investors. This is impacting business-critical areas such as investor confidence, customer satisfaction and demand, talent retention and even license to operate:

• 57% of consumers are willing to change their purchasing habits to reduce negative environmental impact.
• 70% of UK employees expect their employer to take action on societal issues.
• Companies with $4trn of purchasing power are requesting ESG information from suppliers worldwide.

Without robust non-financial information, businesses will not be able to adequately address these stakeholder concerns.

CFOs rise to the challenge

These pressures are making finance leaders, who in the past may have been reluctant to integrate sustainability into their reporting processes, sit up and take notice. Put simply, if the company is going to be held accountable for its non-financial performance, then the CFO must have total confidence in its reporting. That means putting in place the sort of high-quality processes and controls for non-financial metrics that are used for financial information.

Generating value

The benefit of this forward-thinking approach can be broad and far-reaching. With proper metrics and management buy-in, a business is much better placed to understand the role of sustainability in driving business performance and creating long-term value. The connection between sustainability and strategy becomes clear and the need to apply it throughout operations rather than in the narrower field of sustainability reporting or health, safety and environment also becomes apparent.

While external pressure from regulators, investors and other stakeholders are key drivers, the creation of better sustainability metrics can help businesses to better manage risks and have confidence in the progress of sustainability plans. Unlocking this improvement means focusing on the sustainability issues that matter most to the individual company and investing in the key performance indicators (KPIs) that measure them best, putting in place the controls that provide assurance to management teams and investors. Given the increasing appetite of investors and customers for engaging with sustainability leaders, stronger ESG metrics can also become a powerful competitive advantage.

Looking ahead

With these actions in place, 2023 looks set to become the year in which any remaining fluff and puff is finally replaced by meaningful and accountable disclosures that will not only reassure regulators but also support growth.

Leadership teams must better understand which sustainability measures are most important to the business and its stakeholders and why. Stronger processes need to be put in place to build confidence, not only in the delivery of critical sustainability programmes, but also in the data on which they will be judged. This will require stronger governance, accountability, documentation, quality assessment and control. It will also mean choosing technology platforms that support data confidence and completeness. Ultimately, it will be about delivering better data that can make a real difference to the delivery of both business and stakeholder outcomes.

Our panel of 25 expert judges convened in late 2022 for a full day of judging where they whittled down almost 500 entries to a shortlist of around 200 finalists across 24 categories. This includes new categories such as the Net-Zero Innovation of the Year alongside returning favourites such as Partnership & Collaboration of the Year, and the coveted Lloyds Bank Sustainable Business of the Year.

The shortlist of finalists was revealed back in December, via a video and news piece on the edie website. Now, ahead of the Awards Ceremony on 30 March, we have published this free-to-download report providing more information about every shortlisted entry. Click here to download your copy. 

The Sustainability Leaders Awards ceremony, which will reveal our winners, takes place as an in-person event at the Park Plaza London Westminster hotel on Thursday 30 March 2023. Table bookings are now open and can be made here (premium tables are limited).

Commenting on the announcement of this year’s finalists, edie’s content director Luke Nicholls said: “COP27 and COP15 have underlined just how important business leadership is when it comes to accelerating climate action and reversing biodiversity loss.

“Nowhere is this leadership more evident than on our edie Awards shortlist. Despite battling through the perfect storm of Covid-19, conflict and the cost of living crisis, all of this year’s finalists have shifted from talking about a net-zero carbon, just transition to actually delivering it – at scale and at pace. On behalf of the entire edie team, I would like to congratulate all of our finalists – we can’t wait to celebrate with you on 30 March at the Park Plaza London Westminster.”

— CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF THE EDIE AWARDS 2023 FINALISTS REPORT — 

BOOK YOUR TABLE at the edie Awards 2023

From single places for the drinks reception and dinner through to a full Platinum Table front-row experience – there are a variety of options to choose from to ensure you are able to celebrate with the very best of sustainable business at the edie Awards 2023.

Our glittering Awards ceremony takes place at Park Plaza London Westminster on Thursday 30 March 2023, and will include drinks receptions, guest speakers, dinner and a wide selection of entertainment. Avoid disappointment by booking now to guarantee the tickets you want.

BOOK YOUR TABLE HERE.

The retailer trialed this practice on a select number of fruit and vegetable products last year and has claimed this was a success.

Retailers are required to have use-by and/or best-before dates on certain food and beverage products under rules set by the Food Standards Agency (FCA). While use-by dates are applied to foods as a ‘deadline’, when a food presents a high food poisoning risk after a certain amount of time, best-before dates are guidelines for when to eat foods.

Research has repeatedly found that many customers mix the two terms up, throwing away food as soon as it reaches its best-before date, because they assume it is unsafe after this point.

As well as removing best-before dates, the Co-op is also introducing on-pack guidance on fruits and vegetables to highlight the optimum storage conditions to prolong product life. It highlighted previous research from WRAP that found that broccoli often lasts up to 15 days after the ‘best-before’ date before showing deterioration. The difference can be up to 20 days for potatoes, meanwhile, and 70 days for apples.

Co-op has already added on-pack messaging on own-brand milk products, highlighting that they can be frozen at home to prevent waste. It has also replaced ‘use-by’ dates with ‘best-before’ dates on yoghurts, coupled with guidance to check how the yogurts look and smell before binning them.

“As we face into a climate, environmental and cost-of-living crisis, we are committed to helping our customers cut food waste in the home and save money,” said the Co-op’s propositions director Adele Balmforth.

“Date codes can drive decisions in the home, and result in good food being thrown away – which has a cost to both people and to our planet. In addition to axing best before dates on fresh fruit and vegetables, our inclusion of storage on instructions can also help products last longer and, sits alongside our simple on-pack message for shoppers – ‘If it still looks good enough to eat, it is.”

The Co-op is the latest in a string of supermarkets to axe best-before dates on certain products – typically fruits and vegetables. Last August, Asda confirmed the removal of best-before dates from more than 200 fresh fruit and vegetable lines. Staff will be able to check whether products are still in a fit condition to display by scanning a special on-pack code. This move followed the same change at M&S, covering some 300 product lines. Aldi and Lidl then made similar changes last September. Sainsbury’s and Tesco, meanwhile, made these changes some time ago.

Veg box bonanza

In related news, Sainsbury’s is set to stock new fruit and vegetable boxes in 200 of its UK stores, following successful trials last year.

The £2 ‘Taste Me, Don’t Waste Me’ boxes will include a variety of loose fruits and vegetables that would have otherwise gone to waste, but which are fit to eat. The items may be ‘wonky’, not meeting cosmetic standards, or they may be surplus.

“We believe that everyone deserves to eat well at an affordable price, and we hope this additional support will ensure that good quality food doesn’t go to waste,” said Sainsbury’s’ director of fresh food Richard Crampton.

Sainsbury’s also confirmed that it is planning to remove best-before dates from a further 130 product lines, mainly fruits and vegetables, after making the change across more than 100 SKUs last year.

Sainsbury’s is notably aiming to halve food waste across its value chain by 2030 – including waste in consumers’ homes. Waste at the consumer level accounts for some 70% of the UK’s total annual food waste mountain, with WRAP estimating that the average family bins food worth £700 each year.

IFRS S1 is designed to apply globally, to corporates in all sectors. It has been described as the “core baseline” of sustainability reporting, attempting to better unify disclosures on factors such as waste and emissions. It also sets out how companies can integrate reporting, linking sustainability-related and financial information.

IFRS S1 also sets out plans for companies to disclose all material sustainability-related risks and opportunities.

IFRS S2, meanwhile, is more detaied in regard to specific topics – particularly climate mitigation and climate adaptation. It is designed to build on existing disclosure frameworks in this field, chiefly the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).  

While the EU is proposing mandatory “double materiality” impact reporting for big businesses – imploring them to report on their impacts on people and the environment, plus the risks and opportunities that external changes could bring – the ISSB is taking a different approach. Its chief focus at present is enterprise value, which entails getting a deeper understanding of the link between sustainability and company valuation.

“We responded to capital market and G20 demand for a common language of investor-focussed, sustainability-related disclosure, working diligently to deliver standards that fulfil the global baseline,” said ISSB chair Emmanuel Faber.

The ISSB is expected to issue IFRS S1 and S1 by the end of the second quarter, making June the likely issuance date. It is intending to make the standards effective from January 2024, meaning that we will likely see the first corporate reports aligned with the standards in 2025.

Voluntary adoption will be likely in the first case, and some nations and regions may opt for mandatory disclosures in time.

“Given [that] sustainability disclosure is new for many companies globally, the ISSB will introduce programmes that support those applying its Standards as market infrastructure and capacity is built,” the Board said in a statement. But it acknowledged that, in some markets like the EU, disclosure is less new – so there is a need to align with and streamline existing standards.

Commenting on the news, KPMG’s global head of audit Larry Bradley said: “The proposed effective date of 1 January 2024 is ambitious, but – importantly – it’s aligned with the EU timetable, so some companies may adopt on this date regardless of local requirements. It still remains for jurisdictions to decide whether to enforce this date. But the transition provisions, such as not requiring Scope 3 GHG emissions reporting in the first year of adoption, should smooth the path for companies.

“The good news is that companies are going to be explicitly allowed (but not required) to use metrics from GRI and ESRSs where they are useful to investors and there is no equivalent IFRS sustainability standard. This demonstrates a level of pragmatism and a keen awareness of the need to balance cost and benefit for as many companies as possible. However, companies already reporting under GRI won’t be able to simply cut and paste swathes of disclosures, because they will need to apply the ISSB’s investor-focused materiality lens. For companies reporting under multiple frameworks, this will make reporting less challenging.”

The ISSB was first proposed by the not-for-profit International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation (IFRS Foundation) in early 2021, and launched later that year. Its aim is to unify disclosures from corporates, helping investors and other stakeholders to properly compare their sustainability performance and related risks. One year on from its formal launch, in November 2022, CDP confirmed that it will incorporate IFRS S2 into its platform.

Related feature: Why harmonising climate disclosure standards will be crucial in 2023 

Learn how to take your sustainability reporting to the next level at edie 23

Taking place in London on 1-2 March 2023, edie’s biggest annual event has undergone a major revamp to become edie 23, with a new name, new venue, multiple new content streams and myriad innovative event features and networking opportunities.

edie 23 will take place at the state-of-the-art 133 Houndsditch conference venue in central London. Held over two floors, the event will offer up two full days of keynotes, panels, best-practice case studies and audience-led discussions across three themed stages – Strategy, Net-Zero and Action. We have several sessions dedicated to sustainability-related disclosures.

Click here for full information and to book your ticket.

For example, Sylvester Bamkole from CDP will be appearing at 4.20pm on 1 March as part of a seminar on ‘how to create a winning sustainability report’, chaired by former International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) chief execurive Richard Howitt.

Also on 1 March, we’re hosting a briefing on ‘unscrambling the alphabet soup of ESG reporting’; a case study on Seventh Generation’s sustainability disclosures and a panel on ‘navigating the wild west of ESG standards’.

Our panel of 25 expert judges recently convened for a full day of judging where they whittled down almost 500 entries to a shortlist of around 200 finalists across 24 categories. This includes new categories such as the Net-Zero Innovation of the Year alongside returning favourites such as Partnership & Collaboration of the Year, and the coveted Lloyds Bank Sustainable Business of the Year.

The shortlist of finalists was revealed back in December, via a video and news piece on the edie website. Now, ahead of the Awards Ceremony on 30 March, we have published this free-to-download report providing more information about every shortlisted entry.

The Sustainability Leaders Awards ceremony, which will reveal our winners, takes place as an in-person event at the Park Plaza London Westminster hotel on Thursday 30 March 2023. Table bookings are now open and can be  made here (premium tables are limited).

Fill out the form on the left and click ‘download now’ to access your copy of our Meet the Finalists Report.

Across the UK and the world, leading businesses, cities, states and regions are turning environmental ambitions into action. Here, we round up five positive sustainability stories from this week.

ENERGY: Isle of Man targets 75% renewable electricity mix by 2026

As EU lawmakers grapple with how to fine-tune the design of its renewable energy directive, designed to increase the share of renewables in the electricity generation mix to at least 40% by 2030, a more ambitious target has this week been set by the Isle of Man.

The Isle’s government announced this week a new target for three-quarters of its electricity mix to be accounted for by renewables within three years. The majority of the Island’s electricity is currently generated using natural gas, with diesel, energy from waste, hydroelectric and a subsea cable to England making up the remainder.

Ministers have given the go-ahead for the Island’s state-owned electricity supplier, Manx Utilities, to commence plans to develop 30MW of onshore wind and solar capacity to help achieve the new goal. Much of this capacity will be developed on publicly-owned sites, including solar roofs on car parks and government buildings.

The new goal supports an existing ambition to reach net-zero electricity production by 2030.

“30MW by 2026 is an ambitious and stretching goal for an island community, but one we must achieve if we are to play our part in tackling global warming and climate change,” said Chief Minister Alfred Cannan MHK.

RESOURCES: Currys extends refurbished and repaired tech offering

E-waste is the world’s fastest-growing domestic waste stream, according to the UN. The UN estimates that electronics, electricals and related components worth $57bn are wasted globally each year.

The good news is that the appetite for refurbished, repaired and recycled electronics and electricals appears to be growing. British retailer Currys this week revealed that trials sales of pre-owned phones and laptops around Black Friday 2022 saw 80% of lines sell out within one week.

With this in mind, Currys is expanding its circular technology offering. The retailer has launched a dedicated, expanded second-hand product range on its own website, while last year’s trials saw a smaller range made available through the ‘Currys Clearance’ eBay store. You can read edie’s full story here.

Currys’ head of development for the circular economy Mandeep Gobindpuri said:  “In the UK we produce the second highest amount of e-waste per capita in the world. As much as we all love brand-new tech, we need to address this challenge.”

MOBILITY: Travis Perkins touts ‘UK’s largest’ forklift electrification scheme

In this part of this weekly feature, we often cover exciting news relating to public transport, like sleeper trains to displace short-haul flights, or innovative electric buses.

This week, though, we have received a success story regarding business fleets – and specifically concerning the specialist, heavy vehicles which often prove to be the biggest challenge for businesses with 100% electric vehicles targets. Building materials giant Travis Perkins has pledged to switch all 1,100 of its diesel forklift trucks with electric alternatives by the middle of 2024.

The company is anticipating that the change will mitigate up to 6,600 tonnes of CO2e emissions each year. It is notably working to achieve a 27% reduction in vehicle and plant fleet emissions by 2027, against a 2022 baseline.

Travis Perkins will source the new forklifts from Briggs Equiment in what it claims is the UK’s largest forklift fleet electrification initiative to date.

THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT: Hayfield plans 50 ultra-energy-efficient new homes in Gloucestershire

Housebuilder Hayfield has this week submitted an application to Tewkesbury Borough Council for 50 new homes in Gotherington, Gloucestershire, that will all have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) A-rating.

There will be a mix of two, three and five-bedroom houses and bungalows at the £35m development, which will not be connected to gas. Instead, electric heating, cooling and cooking systems will be in place for residents. Air-source heat pumps will serve underfloor heating systems.

Other built-in sustainability features will include solar panels for each home, an electric vehicle charging point at each property and built-in water efficiency measures. As required by law, Hayfield will deliver biodiversity net-gain at the site. It is planning native tree pond and the creation of a pond with wetland flowers.

BUSINESS LEADERSHIP: OVO joins Community Energy England

Community Energy England has stated that just 23 new community-owned renewable energy generation assets were installed in 2021, the lowest number since 2017. It has been calling for more policy support for the community-owned approach, which proponents argue can help to maximise the socio-economic benefits of the energy transition and ensure they are shared fairly.

This week, OVO Energy joined Community Energy England as a Principal Supporter. In this post, it will help community energy associations to access subsidy-free power purchase agreements (PPAs), which are often a deciding factor in whether a project goes ahead or not. OVO Energy has this year signed two new PPAs with subsidy-free onshore wind projects from Genatec and Ambition Community Energy, and has stated an intention to expand and accelerate this work.

“We’re looking forward to helping the OVO team with their initiatives to support the growth of community energy by providing the sector with more investment and enhanced levels of support,” said Community Energy England’s head of operations Philip Coventry.

“With ongoing cooperation, we are confident that OVO’s engagement with community energy will facilitate new opportunities that will benefit the whole sector and its growth.‘’

Don’t miss out: Register now to attend edie 23

Taking place in London on 1-2 March 2023, edie’s biggest annual event has undergone a major revamp to become edie 23, with a new name, new venue, multiple new content streams and myriad innovative event features and networking opportunities.

edie 23 will take place at the state-of-the-art 133 Houndsditch conference venue in central London. Held over two floors, the event will offer up two full days of keynotes, panels, best-practice case studies and audience-led discussions across three themed stages – Strategy, Net-Zero and Action.

Click here for full information and to book your ticket.