Today, 22nd April, the world is celebrating Earth Day, but what is it exactly?  

From Public Companies, Housing Associations to Private Enterprises, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) concerns are becoming an increasingly discussed topic. You may be thinking about how to start raising these ESG issues to your Board of Directors, so we have written this helpful guide.

For the fifth year running, Convene is delighted to be sponsoring Herne Hill Velodrome Track League 2023 with Convene ESG. 

As we continue to find answers to climate change, organisations and companies are increasingly required to demonstrate their sustainability through strict environmental-based frameworks. ESG is one such framework, and with Convene ESG you can help your organisation simplify their ESG data collection and reporting.

ESG stands for Environmental, Social, Governance, and refers to the documented sustainability efforts that a company can make in order to shape better environmental, social, and governmental practices for the future.

With Convene ESG, our aim is to alleviate some of the challenges of ESG data gathering, performance tracking, and reporting for ESG factors so organisations can focus instead on their moves towards global sustainability and net zero.

Here at Convene, it is important to us that we maintain our eco mission and green philosophy. We are a paperless company dedicated to helping other organisations develop their sustainability goals, and Convene ESG is just one of our products that achieves this.

Sponsoring Track League is a chance for us to demonstrate further our commitment to sustainability, as well as support a community space that so many people enjoy. 

Forbes estimates that organisations can save up to $4 million annually through automating simple processes with software. It has also been proven time and time again that investing in ESG saves you money. But why is this, and how can you apply this to your ESG reporting?

Today Convene ESG sponsored Inside Housing’s Webinar on “ESG Reporting: Cutting through the complexity”, with guest speakers including Andy Smith(The Good Economy), Julie McDowell (Chair, Blackwood Housing), Russell Smith (ESG Lead, Orbit Group), Brendan Sarsfield (Chair, Sustainability for Housing) and our very own Arturo Dell (Convene ESG). We want to thank everyone for an insightful discussion into the status and future of ESG in Housing. In case you missed it, here are our key takeaways. 

On the 15th and 16th of March, Convene attended the Housing Finance Conference and Exhibition 2023 in Liverpool. We want to thank the NHF, as well as all speakers and attendees for putting on and participating in an engaging and insightful conference. If you missed our talk, please join us at our Inside Housing Webinar next week.

The Housing Finance Conference focused on ‘building resilience through turbulent times’, and featured many interesting talks on topics surrounding the cost of living, sustainability and green finance, cybersecurity and the future of the housing sector.

Housing Associations are paving the way for other sectors with their ESG efforts, but the task of ESG shouldn’t just fall on one ESG manager. ESG needs to be integrated into everyone’s day-to-day task management and governance processes. Here are our helpful tips on how this can be achieved simply and seamlessly.

Today we were joined on our webinar by Dr. Ad Hereijgers from Ritterwald to discuss what their label means for the future of the SRS. 

The first step on any journey is a plan, and SRS Reporting is not a simple process! 

Today we hosted yet another successful webinar, this time choosing to focus on the future of ESG. 2023 will also bring in new challenges, including how to report on Scope 3 emissions, net zero targets and how to sustainably build new homes. The SRS can help massively with this as it allows for a collaborative effort amongst other Housing Associations. Convene ESG is working on assisting you with these problems by creating a Carbon Calculator and ensuring our “best practices” library is regularly updated. 

In recent years, organisations have had to face increasing operational and compliance risks in both their industries and communities. 

One way to confront and address these issues is by utilising a sustainability lens, or an environmental, social and governance (ESG) lens.


What is ESG reporting?

ESG represents a theory that there is an ethical way to do business, and this method involves prioritising sustainability; focusing on the environment, being socially responsible and establishing transparent governance. 

ESG reporting refers to the disclosures of data on the organisation’s operations and how they function within ESG standards. 

These disclosures are a great way for organisations to demonstrate their ESG policies, practices, and performance, as well as communicating their goals to different stakeholders: customers, investors, employees, suppliers, lenders, and shareholders.

Reports should cover environmental impact (eg. water/energy usage, waste management, greenhouse gas emissions), social elements (eg. community involvement, labour and diversity practices), and governance (eg. compliance, political contributions, board structure).


Why is ESG important?

Creating a quality ESG report is important for demonstrating your organisation’s commitment to sustainability. 

ESG disclosures help further sustainability efforts and good governance practices, as well as enabling a stronger financial performance. The data found in these reports can assist organisations in aligning their purpose, strategy, and operations.

Shareholders and investors can also use ESG reports to understand the related opportunities and risks of the organisation, and see how the company creates sustainable returns and mitigates risks.

Additionally, ESG disclosures can be a useful tool for maintaining transparency. They can aid in shaping better environmental, social, and governmental practices for the future.


Is ESG Mandatory?

Universally, the answer is no, not yet. However, according to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), recently more global investors have been requesting transparency and quality ESG reporting.

While several countries have incorporated measures requiring mandatory ESG disclosures, it has not yet reached a global scale. Steps are being taken to create a worldwide framework for ESG reporting standards, in order to facilitate the standardisation of the ESG reporting process. 

One such step came in November 2021, when the IFRS Foundation established the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). The ISSB is focused on generating global sustainability standards for investors for its participating countries.

Another example of this came at the end of June 2022, where the European Parliament and the Council (EU Member States) agreed to require the mandatory reporting on ESG  for a considerable number of companies operating on the EU market.

Large or listed subsidiaries of non-EU companies will have to report for fiscal year 2025 on the basis of European Sustainability Reporting Standards.


ESG Reporting in the UK

At present, the UK has no single ESG law or regulation. The UK’s ESG policy consists of domestic and EU-derived laws and regulations, many of which are not ESG-focused.

However, a key regulation for UK ESG disclosures is the Companies Act, as it includes requirements for annual reporting. These rules apply to larger companies that are listed, have more than 500 employees or exceed £500 million in annual turnover

Non-financial information has always been a requirement of annual reports, but in 2022, the Act was extended to include sustainability details. Large UK companies are now required to report on their energy use and carbon emissions as a part of their annual reports.

Some sectors and organisations of a certain size now have standards they may have to report against. For example, the Housing sector has the Sustainability Reporting Standard, which whilst currently optional is paving the way for industries to specialise and standardise their ESG reports.

Additionally, starting in 2023, ESG reporting in the UK will be further defined through Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDRs). These SDRs will provide a structure for organisations to manage sustainability opportunities, potential risks and impacts, as well as set specific metrics and targets. 

While the SDRs are rolled out over the next two years, fully mandatory disclosure is expected by 2025.


How Can Convene Help With Your ESG Reporting?

Here at Convene we have developed our own ESG reporting tool: Convene ESG. 

Our aim is to alleviate some of the challenges of ESG data gathering, performance tracking, and reporting for ESG factors so organisations can move towards global sustainability and net zero.

Designed in collaboration with our clients, Convene ESG makes reporting simple, so you can focus on developing sustainable strategies. 

Convene ESG can help you report on a range of existing standards including TCFD, GRI, the SRS amongst a range of others, and are always looking to expand.

It also has a built-in comparison feature, which allows you to compare against competitors' formatting of their publicly accessible reports. This will help your whole sector develop the best results possible.

To find out more about how Convene can help your organisation, you can read about our early adopters here or book a demo.

On 6 December 2022, Convene sponsored and participated in the NHF’s National Smaller Housing Associations’ Conference and Exhibition. Having attended the conference last year and had a valuable time, we were excited to once again dive into the world of smaller Housing Associations.

Organisations are increasingly looking for clear standards by which to assess their ESG performance. The GRI, or Global Reporting Initiative, was established to make sustainability reporting easier by creating a clear framework to follow.

Smaller Housing Associations have many important concerns, from safety to financing. Therefore, it is easy for more seemingly trivial matters like Environmental Social Governance (ESG) to get left to the wayside. However, the knock on social impact of not taking these issues seriously for your residents, particularly during this housing crisis, are dire.