We have launched ‘Frankly Speaking’ - a new podcast discussing the latest political, legal, and business developments in the field of ESG, business and human rights, and corporate reporting.
Frankly Speaking builds on our standing in the field of ESG research and engagement with policy makers as well as businesses. Our host Richard Howitt speaks frankly and personally about what moves policy makers, businesses, and activists to make responsible business the norm and - last but not least - redefine business! Richard is a pioneer in the field of corporate disclosure and a former member of the European Parliament.
“All who want to see purposeful companies actually make a difference to the social and environmental challenges which we all face, recognise that we will only be able to do so through dialogue, cooperation, ideas and innovation, better understanding of the challenges and by achieving an accountability for all of us, for the contribution we need to make. ‘Frankly Speaking’ hopes to be a forum for all of these. We hope you will join us,” says Richard.
You can look forward to a number of deep and personal conversations with leading experts from different fields.
When and where can you listen to us?
A new episode is published every Wednesday and available on:
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As part of the reform of the EU Non-Financial Reporting Directive, the European Commission plans to develop mandatory EU sustainability reporting standards. The analysis of the non-financial reports of 1000 European companies by the Alliance for Corporate Transparency has proven how companies fail to report relevant, specific and comparable information. While this is true for all sustainability matters, it is particularly exacerbated in the case of corporate impacts and risks along the supply chain.
The European Court of Justice has ruled that mining at Poland’s sprawling Turów coal mine must cease while the court processes a Czech government lawsuit against Poland for illegally operating the mine. The Polish mine pushes right up to the Czech and German borders and is depleting people’s water supplies and undercutting houses in nearby communities.
Local groups and NGOs including Frank Bold, that is very active in the process, welcomed the Czech government’s decision to file a lawsuit at the European Court of Justice against the Polish government for the illegal operation of the Turów lignite coal mine, which has been dug right up to the Czech and German borders, damaging local water supplies for nearby communities. This is the first such legal case for the Czech Republic and the first in EU’s history where one member state sues another for environmental reasons.