With less than a decade left to address the threat of climate change, the EU Commission has launched its Green Deal. And today, the EU Finnish Presidency conference on company law and climate change addresses the emerging consensus that businesses need to be held accountable for their contribution.
The recognition that sustainability in the EU and beyond needs to be embedded in corporate governance has led over 60 leading academics to endorse a statement that addresses the pressure and incentives for companies to prioritise short-term profits at the expense of environmental, social or even companies’ own long-term economic sustainability.
In order to clarify the obligations of company boards and directors and make corporate governance* practice significantly more sustainable and focused on the long term, the signatories recommend that:
The statement is signed by many highly respected voices in the fields of company law, corporate governance and management, including Robert G. Eccles (Visiting Professor at the University of Oxford and previously Professor at Harvard Business School), Simon Deakin (Professor at the University of Cambridge), Katharina Pistor (Professor at the Columbia University) and Rick Wartzman (Executive Director of the Drucker Institute), Marie-Laure Djelic (Sciences Po), Blanche Segrestin (Mines ParisTech) and Beate Sjåfjell (University of Oslo).
Contact:
The statement remains open for signing - interested parties are encouraged to contact us at:
Jeroen Veldman
Associate Professor, Nyenrode Business University
jeroen.veldman@gmail.com
Susanna Arus
Communications and EU Public Affairs at Frank Bold
susanna.arus@frankbold.org
*The EU Commission’s Action Plan on Financing Sustainable Growth published in 2018 outlined preparatory work on sustainable corporate governance in Action 10. See here.
After several months of delay, today, the European Commission presented its proposal for a Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive in Brussels. The main objective of this new legislation is to integrate into European law international standards such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights - adopted globally over a decade ago - and standards developed and approved by the OECD.
What is the content of sustainability due diligence standards, how can companies effectively implement due diligence, and what challenges and benefits does it bring to businesses? These and other questions were answered by speakers at the webinar organised by Frank Bold.
On 23 February 2022, the European Commission released its proposal for a directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence. This directive could represent a landmark step forward in minimising the negative impacts of businesses on workers, communities and the environment worldwide. In response, over 220 NGOs and trade unions from around the world welcome the proposal as an essential and long-awaited step toward corporate accountability, responsible business conduct and access to justice.
