The issue of climate change has made it to the top of the corporate big wheel, with 87 percent of non-financial reports from Global FT500 companies reporting on the issue, according to a report from CorporateRegister.com. CorporateRegister.coms Corporate Climate Communications is the first study to assess global leading companies communications on climate change, as opposed to their carbon performance. During 2007, two-thirds of the Global FT500 issued a stand-alone nonfinancial report. Evaluating these the study reveals that 87% address climate change, with 78% publishing greenhouse gas emissions data.
Paul Scott, MD CorporateRegister.com:
The worlds largest companies are voluntarily disclosing valuable information on climate change issues, including quantified, verified data and specific targets. The era of wholesale corporate climate change denial is over: we may now be witnessing the beginnings of corporate climate activism. With so many companies now disclosing such information, issues of credibility and accountability come to the forefront. Only 1 in 10 North American reporters provide external assurance with their climate change disclosures, compared with 3 in 5 European reporters. The average among Global FT500 reporters is 44%, evidence of a marked commitment to disclosing robust, credible climate change information.
Robert Dornau, Director Climate Change Programme, SGS
"Companies want to communicate to their stakeholders what they are doing to address their environmental and social responsibility. The question on everyone’s mind, however, is how can I trust you? Independent third-party assurance is an important way to respond to stakeholder concerns over credibility, especially with regard to climate change and emissions data."
