UN Global Compact Network Australia Solving the ESG Disclosure Puzzle

Investors globally are calling for greater consistency, comparability and reliability when it comes to reporting on climate and other sustainability-related information. While the focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues has grown within the private sector, approaches to disclosure remain fragmented. The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) aims to deliver a comprehensive global baseline of sustainability-related disclosure standards and provide investors with a clearer picture as to how businesses are managing their ESG issues.

Join us on Wednesday 17 August 10.00am (AEST) to:

• Understand the current sustainability reporting landscape and global developments in disclosure frameworks
• Learn about the aims of the ISSB, including key takeaways from the draft sustainability and climate-related disclosure proposals
• Understand how the ISSB’s work is being considered in an Australian context and how businesses and investors can prepare.

Speakers include:

• Karen McWilliams, Business Reform Leader, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Director, UN Global Compact Network Australia
  Karen McWilliams is the Business Reform Leader in the Advocacy and Professional Standing team at Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand. She is responsible for shaping and influencing business reform issues of relevance to Chartered Accountants, including insolvency, corporate governance, anti-money laundering, corporations law and sustainability matters. Karen represents CA ANZ on the Advisory Board of the Deakin Centre for Integrated Reporting and ASX Corporate Governance Council and is chair of the financial committee of the Climate Measurement Standards Initiative. With over 20 years experience in a variety of business and advisory roles, she started her career in the specialist field of audit and has held positions with Worley Parsons, Ernst and Young, and Deloitte in London. She is a Fellow Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and holds a Master of Arts in Mathematical Sciences from the University of Oxford.
• Zoe Whitton, Managing Director, Head of Impact, Pollination
  

  Zoe Whitton is Head of Impact at Pollination Group, a specialist climate change investment and advisory firm. Zoe assists companies and investors to navigate the impacts of climate change and to build new businesses and products which are transition aligned. She previously led the award-winning APAC ESG Research team at Citi, advising institutional investors globally on climate change and sustainable development. Earlier in her career Zoe covered ESG and climate change at Credit Suisse and at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and served as a youth delegate to the UNFCCC. She serves on the boards of the Investor Group on Climate Change and the Centre for Policy Development, and on the Steering Committee of the Australian Climate Governance Initiative. She is also member of the Australian Sustainable Finance Institute’s Technical Advisory Group, and the Sydney Environment Institute’s Advisory Group. Zoe has won numerous awards for her research and work on climate finance and risk, and regularly contributes to the wider conversation on sustainable finance by commentating in the Australian and international press along with various publications.

• Louise Davidson AM, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Council of Superannuation Investors
  Louise is the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI). ACSI’s members include Australian and international asset owners and institutional investors. ACSI’s objective is to improve the environmental, social and governance performance of the listed companies in which our members invest. Appointed CEO in 2015, Louise has more than 20 years senior experience in the financial services and superannuation industry.  She joined ACSI from Cbus, where, as Investment Manager, ESG, she was responsible for the integration of ESG issues within Cbus’ investment processes. In 2015 Louise was named Victoria’s Local Hero in the Australian of the Year Awards for her work as the co-founder of the Mother’s Day Classic Walk/Run for Breast Cancer Research.  Established in 1998, this national event has raised almost $40m for breast cancer research.  In 2019, Louise was made a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the superannuation and funds management sectors, and to breast cancer research. Louise is the Chair of the Mother’s Day Classic Foundation and a Director of the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
• Paul Dobson, Partner, Climate and Sustainability, Deloitte
  Paul is a Partner in Deloitte’s Climate & Sustainability practice in Risk Advisory. Paul has over 23 years’ experience working in Australia and the UK with clients across diverse sectors with a particular focus on financial services and industrials. Paul supports clients to understand the impacts, risks and opportunities arising from climate change and sustainability and develop strategies to respond. This includes consideration of physical and transition impacts of climate change and the strategic and financial implications in the long term. Paul also has extensive experience in sustainability and greenhouse gas reporting and assurance to enhance the rigour of sustainability information and provide comfort to stakeholders.

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