NGOS

Question 1

Greenhouse Gas Protocol

Answer 1

A collab between WBCSD (business NGO), the World Resources Institute, and others

Question 2

Environmental and social issues

Answer 2

-Mountaintop removal coal mining
- oil sands and oil shale development
- forest conservation and protection
- nuclear power generation
- palm oil
- human rights
- cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines

Question 3

NGOS

Answer 3

BankTrack consortium, Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, National Resources Defense Council, Berne Declaration, Netwerk Vlaanderen/FairFin, Amnesty International, Sierra Club

Question 4

McDonald’s and Environmental Defense Fund

Answer 4

1980s public pressure to reduce packaging waste - 80% waste generated behind counter in food prep and supply systems.

Partnership to reduce their solid waste to create new sustainable packaging. Eliminated over 300 million pounds of packaging and recycled 1 million tons of corrugated boxes and reduced restaurant waste by 30% and saved $6 million per year over the next decade

Question 5

UNEP Finance Initiative

Answer 5

Founded at time of UNCED, over 200 financial institutions that are signatories: banks, insurance companies, asset managers. Has focused on organizing events, publishing reports, and raising visibility of sustainability issues in finance sector

Question 6

UN Global Compact

Answer 6

Initiative of Secretary General Kofi Annan and launched at UN in 2020.

Voluntary initiative based on CEO commitments to implement sustainability principles; complex governance

Ten principles concerning human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption

Over 10,000 corporate participants from 170 countries

Question 7

SDGS

Answer 7

Established after Millenium Development Goals. Unlike UNEP FI and UN Global Compact, corporations are not the formal adopting institutions but nations are.

Business activity involved in development process and will likely be a key part of SDG implementation

17 goals and 169 targets

Question 8

Challenge of financing infrastructure

Answer 8

Infrastructure development can have material and irreversible impacts on the environment and local peoples

Environmental laws and regulations in emerging markets are inconsistent across jurisdictions and often not well developed or enforced

There is a risk that banks enter into a race to the bottom to win mandates, putting banks that seek to apply higher standards at a competitive disadvantage

Environmental NGOs are focused on infrastructure and follow the projects (and banks financing them very closely)

Question 9

Types of NGO organizations focused on influencing business

Answer 9

Human rights, consumer rights, nuclear war, weapons, health, homelessness, children, arts and culture, business and industry (BINGOs)

Question 10

Examples of media and article against businesses

Answer 10

Don’t bank on the bomb
- 411 financial institutions on loans, bond and share issuances and shareholdings related to 28 selected nuclear weapons producing companies
- State Street, BlackRock
- articles in international press

Banking on Coal
- ranking of top 20 banks in terms of lending, underwriting advisory volume for coal mining companies and coal fired power plants
- JP Morgan, Citi, RBS
- Various banks critiques for investment in Coal India
- media focus

Facing Finance
- 19 banks and insurers ranked for period 2011-13 according to volume of loans, share and bond issuances for 26 multinational companies and shares under management
- continental Europe, not UK or US
- BNPP, CS, Deutsche Bank
- media uptake