Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Business Transparency Program for the U.S.A. - GRI Training and Focus on Materiality for the Public Agency Sector

December 23, 2013 /3BL Media/ - Event:  Two-day intensive workshop focused on GRI-based reporting, G4 guidelines, and materiality for the public agency sector.  Washington, D.C.  – February 25-26, 2014.  Plus six months of follow up workshops for participants.  All part of the GRI “Business Transparency Program for the United States of America.” (“GRI BTP”)

Program coordinators/presenters:  ISOS Group, GRI Certified Trainers; G&A Institute, exclusive Data Partners for the USA.

Participants: The GRI BTP is open to personnel of GSA vendors, and Federal, state, municipal, and United Nations’ agencies.  Additionally, trade association managers and corporations who are influenced by the Federal government to comply with new sustainable procurement standards are encouraged to attend.

Background:  Materiality Matters... What issues, indicators, and aspects matter for public sector organizations reporting on their Sustainability efforts?  From sustainability, first launched as an overarching policy framework for minimizing negative impacts in the global arena, to the GRI guidelines as a practical application for informing change, a great deal of movement towards greater transparency has occurred the world over. The GRI framework has become the preferred means of structured reporting on sustainability policies, strategies, performance, materiality process, and stakeholder engagement for corporations, social institutions, NGOs, and public sector agencies.  In the United States, this includes reporting by Federal government agencies, and by a growing number of cities and municipalities (and public agencies such as airport authorities).

United Nations International Objectives:  Common Framework on Environmental and Social Sustainability
The framework comes as a result of a broader effort to harmonize the various agendas set forth under the UN system. Flexibility allows for each agency to application the common set of principles and measures in a way that is unique to the context that each operates within. Following the Rio+20, the UN system has worked towards further enhancing the development of its sustainability measures in its work and operations around the world with many host governments who have also made the sustainability pledge. A guest presentation from the World Bank (WB) will demonstrate the connection between global commitments and back down to the social and environmental footprint of day-to-day operations at the organization through the publication of its recent G4 report.

Federal government focus:  The Obama Administration issued Executive Order 13514 on October 05, 2009 – outlining actions and goals to achieve “Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance.”  The EO set sustainability goals for Federal agencies, including setting year 2020 greenhouse gas (GhG) reduction targets; increasing energy efficiency; reducing fleet petroleum consumption; supporting sustainable communities; and leveraging Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) has issued guiding principles to provide a framework for “green” contracts with the Federal government; these include:

• Environment + Price + Performance=Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (“EPP”)
• Pollution Prevention
• Life Cycle Perspective/Multiple Attributes
• Comparison of Environmental Impacts
• Environmental Performance Information

The General Services Administration (GSA) makes recommendations for Federal contract officers:

• Require Contractors to Use Green Products
• Assess Direct Environmental Impact
• Assess Indirect Environmental Impact

Workshop Content:  The workshop content will include background on the international agenda’s ripple effect on other global and state entities, in addition to the Executive Order and follow up actions; vendor/contractor requirements; the important topic of “materiality” in sustainability reporting; the concept of “quality” in disclosure and reporting vs. “quantity,” and “impact” vs. “immensity” of disclosures. This will be complimented by a panel covering international, federal, and state dimensions of reporting.

The General Services Administration (GSA) Sustainability Program Area includes information to aid Federal facilities in developing / maintaining sustainable facilities and developing and promoting sustainable practices within their environmental programs and activities.  ISOS Group’s work with government agencies, GSA personnel and vendors alike, guidance for better positioning of disclosures to strengthen strategic opportunities will be a component of the workshop offering and follow up support over the six months following.

Federal agencies such as the US Postal Service (USPS), the US Army, the US Mint,and NREL have published sustainability reports.  Major vendors to the Federal government such as Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin have also published sustainability reports.  The EO required that Federal agencies report on their supply chain activities, which over time will require vendors to publish their own reports.  The GSA has recommended that agencies and vendors use the Global Reporting Initiative framework for reporting.  The fourth generation of guidelines – the G4 – was introduced in May 2013, and the workshop will provide comprehensive details on G4 reporting for participants.

February 25^th & 26^th 2014:  The training session will consist of: Two-day training session, plus six months of support for participants including information on environmental metrics that are material, guidance on compliance with the Executive Order and related rules, and the tie in to broader international objectives.

Bonus Actionable Research: For the first time ever G&A Institute will discuss the research and findings of the 2013 analysis of over 40 public sector companies for their responses across all 84 GRI Performance Indicators.  This hard data research conducted by G&A Institute on public sector agency reporting will be shared with participants to aid in their respective materiality processes to help determine the most important issues with specific findings on the GRI Categories, Aspects, and Key Performance Indicators for internal and external stakeholders.

Certification:  Upon completion of the two-day training, participants in the Business Transparency Program will receive a certificate directly from the Global Reporting Initiative in sustainability reporting according to the G4 framework. Completion of this course signifies the participant’s ability to coordinate the reporting process.

For more information and registration: http://isosgroup.com/gri-certified-reporting/trainings/washington-dc/

Or Contact:
Louis Coppola, Executive VP - G&A Institute – 646-430-8230 x14 - email: lcoppola@ga-institute.com

Alexandru Georgescu, CFO & Sustainability Strategist, Co-Founder ISOS Group 619-246-1122; email:  ageorgescu@isosgroup.com      

Meet Governance & Accountability Institute [“G&A”]
G&A was chosen by GRI to be the exclusive GRI Data Partner for the United States of America, The United Kingdom, and The Republic of Ireland. This means that we are responsible for finding, analyzing, and sharing important details of every sustainability report from every organization headquartered in these three countries. Our data feeds into multiple important endpoints used by various stakeholders (investors, NGOs, data providers, media, clients etc), we communicate and announce every report via our communications channels, and the details are combined with the other global data partners in the GRI reporting database.

This year the G&A Institute researchers analyzed over 1,500 reports for their disclosure levels on all 84 GRI G3.1 performance indicators.  With this comprehensive data set, for the first time ever, we can combine the materiality processes of over 1,500 reporters and give you a comprehensive overview into which GRI indicators are found to be most material for your sector.

Contact
Governance & Accountability Institute | E-mail: info@ga-institute.com | Office: 646.430.8230

Meet ISOS Group [“ISOS”]
ISOS Group is a leading sustainability consultancy company with big project experience that blends a passion for corporate social responsibility reporting with educating the next generation of sustainability professionals. ISOS is a GRI Certified Training Partner in the U.S. in which capacity we have individually trained the highest number of sustainability professionals in the world. 

Our approach to GRI training uses proven methods tested with previous clients, knowledge in the field and the best standard for sustainability reporting, the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) G4 Framework. Our team of GRI Certified practitioners has unmatched experience working with a wide range of businesses, which allows us to share best practices and valuable insights across all sectors. We specialize in GRI and CDP sustainability reporting, external assurance of CSR reports and verification of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate data, which gives us a holistic understanding of reporting, and assurance.

ISOS Group is a Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Certified Training Partner and a Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) Silver Consultancy Partner in the U.S.

Contact
ISOS Group | E-mail: info@isosgroup.com | Office: 619.246.1122

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