Listen to Richard Hardyment, author and head of business engagement at the Institute of Business Ethics
In this week’s episode, Richard Howitt asks: can we believe the numbers on environment, social and governance (ESG)?
To address this, we welcome Richard Hardyment, a research professional, very used to assessing numbers, but who has just produced a book saying that there is little or no evidence that ESG has and has had any positive outcomes for people and the planet in the real world. And yet he calls himself emphatically pro-sustainability. After directing research at the World Benchmarking Alliance, he is now head of business engagement at the Institute of Business Ethics. His new book is called Measuring Good Business: Making Sense of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Data.
In this episode, you’ll hear more about:
“I think all the work that's been going on in standards over the last 20 years really is hugely welcome and important. It's been critical in terms of painting a picture for companies and investors, the direction of travel. It's crucial to provide the language in terms of the frameworks, what we mean by these topics, what does human rights mean, what does climate resilience mean and codifying that. And it's been vital in terms of helping businesses allocate resources and do this in an efficient way. And obviously the upcoming regulations are presenting a challenge on that front.”
From Responsible Business to Responsible AI: what you need to know and do. Listen to Kathryn Dovey, founder of Recalibrate and ex-OECD & Alex de Vries-Gao, data scientist and researcher at VU Amsterdam
How has responsible investment developed over the past ten years? Listen to Nathalie Dogniez, chair of Eurosif and Julian Toth, Executive Director of the Czech Sustainable Investment Forum
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How far has business and human rights come since the early 2000s? Listen to John Morrison, founder and former CEO of the Institute for Business and Human Rights.
