#109 Jeremy Nicholls: Why Accountants Aren't Saving the World

Current financial accounting methods are responsible for causing environmental and social harm across the world – but how can this be remedied?

In this episode of Frankly Speaking, Richard Howitt was joined by Jeremy Nicholls, co-founder and former Chief Executive of Social Value International and Ashoka Fellow at the University of Liverpool. Jeremy previously worked for PwC as well as on the United Nations Development Programme’s SDG Impact Standards.

Together they discussed Jeremy’s new book ‘The Accountancy Paradox: How Financial Accounting is Damaging the World (But Can Help Repair It)’. You’ll hear about:

• The history of accounting and the moment which solidified it around users’ expectation of financial returns rather than external social and environment costs

• Why Jeremy believes current ESG approaches including sustainability reporting don’t really solve the heart of the problem  

• Practical solutions to how to fix the financial accounting system, including revising its conceptual framework to include wellbeing accounting  

• Why the argument that externalities should be internalised is more important than ever in today’s world  

• The role of lack of faith, spirituality and moral codes in human-caused environmental and social harm  

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