The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) announced in October, following its Annual General Assembly, that it is introducing stricter criteria for accepting new members, based on a recommendation from the Council's Executive Committee (ExCo). The initiative was agreed upon with the more than 200 member companies. In 2020, the WBCSD celebrates 25 years of work on the transition to a sustainable world. The decision to adopt the new criteria confirms the WBCSD's position as the leading business organization for companies to transform their organizational and collaborative sustainability ambitions into reality. The five criteria focus on the three priority sustainability challenges facing our society: climate emergency, nature loss, and inequality. Furthermore, the WBCSD expects its member companies to pursue the highest standards of corporate governance and transparency.
The five criteria are:
Aim to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 and have a science-based plan to implement the plan;
Set ambitious, science-based, short- and medium-term environmental targets that contribute to the recovery of nature/biodiversity by 2050;
Declare support for the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, establishing a policy of respect for human rights;
Declare support for inclusion, equality, diversity and the elimination of any form of discrimination;
Operate at the highest level of transparency by disclosing material sustainability information in line with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and align Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) with environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks.
