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In This Issue
Editor's Note
Harnessing the Power of Cross-Sector Collaboration
As BSR explored in our 20th anniversary Report and Conference last month, sustainability has entered the mainstream of business and society. However, new partnerships and new ideas are needed to bring large-scale solutions to many of the enduring problems we face—from climate change to human rights to economic development. Cross-industry, multisector collaboration brings together diverse views and approaches, while harnessing the power of a unified network, to tackle these intractable issues.
This week, BSR’s Eric Olson explores the need for collaboration—and describes the cross-sector initiatives BSR will launch and expand in 2013 to address major sustainability issues.
We also highlight the opportunity for the financial services companies to report Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions from their investments.
Finally, we discuss Devex Impact, an initiative supported by BSR that brings together business and development experts to build better public-private partnerships.
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In Depth
A Call for Collaboration in BSR Initiatives
By Eric Olson, Senior Vice President, Advisory Services, BSR
In the next year, BSR will focus on sustainability work that features collaboration as a critical ingredient. Multiyear, multistakeholder initiatives that cross sectors and issues to address large-scale sustainability problems offer new opportunities to innovate and tap into the power of a unified network.
Read more →
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Spotlight
New Emissions Reporting Guidelines for Banks on Investment Footprints
By Andrew Matthews, Associate, Advisory Services, BSR
Of the financial services companies who responded to the 2012 Carbon Disclosure Project Global 500, 72 percent reported on one or more Scope 3 categories (emissions stemming from the value chain).
Many of these companies, however, have little insight into how to report on perhaps their most material Scope 3 category, emissions from their investments, due to the lack of a universal standard. Because financial services companies provide capital to all industries, including those considered “clean” and “dirty,” there is a need to create clear guidelines for reporting on investments.
BSR is collaborating with the GHG Protocol to supplement the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standard with a credible, global, and financial-services-specific accounting methodology on emissions associated with equity and debt investments and project finance, among others. Companies can provide input via an online survey and learn more through a BSR Sustainability Matters webinar, to be scheduled in the coming months.
For further information on BSR’s perspective or to learn how to get involved, please contact BSR's Ryan Schuchard or Andrew Matthews.
Toolbox
Devex Impact: Where Business and Development Meet
By
How does a company do well and do good? Increasingly, companies want to know how to create solutions to maximize economic outcomes, how to use their expertise to improve development outcomes, and how to put in place stewardship and governance policies that create a level playing field.
During his plenary address at the BSR Conference 2012, USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah launched Devex Impact, an online community that connects business professionals with development practitioners around the world. It provides breaking news, in-depth analysis, and practical information, including a database of public-private partnership case studies, tools to help identify potential partners, and opportunities to discover new approaches to make an impact. Its platform can connect peers across industries and geographies to help build partnerships that are good for both development and business.
As a member of the Devex Impact Strategic Advisory Council, BSR hopes to help transform global development through market-based activities and cross-sector partnerships.
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