Sustainability has been a hot topic for the past decade, the efforts to enhance and expedite it have greatly accelerated due to the urgent need in strengthening climate resilience. This has brought about the creation of many frameworks, organisations and policies. With the widespread awareness in sustainability topics, many terminologies and acronyms have been used for ease of understanding and communication and it can seem intimidating to the newcomers. It may seem like an alphabet soup of acronyms. Hence, we are here to help you with a list of the top 10 most commonly used acronyms and terminologies, what they stand for and mean.
1. ESG: Environmental, Social, Governance
It is a form of criteria or categories for people to evaluate an organisation’s performance, impacts and how far advanced they are with sustainable development. This criteria can also be integrated into investments when investors are deciding what to buy.
Environmental factors: greenhouse gas emissions, waste management, energy efficiency
Social factors: underpaid labour, workplace safety, support for local communities
Governance factors: stakeholder engagement, transparency, governance frameworks
2. CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility
Corporate social responsibility is a way that organisations contribute to society through engaging in or supporting volunteering or ethically-oriented practices. This can be done by funding educational programs and supporting health initiatives. CSR can help with creating a stronger brand image, improving brand reputation.
3. GRI: Global Reporting Initiative
GRI is the independent, international non-profit organization that helps businesses and other organizations take responsibility for their impacts, by providing them with the common language to communicate those impacts.They provide standards and frameworks for sustainability reporting, to increase transparency and accountability, referencing UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
4. SDG: Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 SDGs are integrated—they recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic and environmental sustainability. Some of the 17 goals include: gender equality, affordable and clean energy, responsible consumption and production.
5. CDP: Carbon Disclosure Project
CDP runs the global environmental disclosure system. Each year, CDP takes the information supplied in its annual reporting process and scores companies and cities based on their developments in sustainability. Through our independent scoring methodology, we measure corporate and city progress and incentivize action on climate change, forests and water security.
6. COP: Conference of the Parties
For nearly three decades the UN has been bringing together almost every country on earth for global climate summits, finding ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally in an equitable way. This annual meeting is also called the COP. The COP21 in Paris in 2015 was also the one that secured the crucial Paris Agreement, which was an unification of the world’s nations agreeing to limit the amount of carbon emissions and combat climate change. It marked the beginning of changes, from manufacturing, to agriculture and textiles.
7. Green Bonds
Green bonds are issued by organizations to finance environmental and climate projects exclusively. These projects are commonly focused on renewable energy, clean transportation and green buildings.
8. Circular Economy
A circular economy is an alternative to a traditional linear economy (take, make, waste). It seeks to reduce waste, recovers resources at the end of a product’s life, and channels them back into production, thus reducing pressure on the environment. This helps to drive greater resource productivity, creating a more competitive economy, addressing resource scarcity.
Sustainability Acronyms & Terminologies need not be confusing!
With the rate of climate change and efforts to expedite resistance against it, sustainable development is crucial for us and is definitely here to stay. These acronyms and terminologies are inevitable for ease of communication, especially when trying to educate and spread awareness. However, they need not be confusing once you understand more about them.
In Aventis, we offer a suite of Sustainability & ESG courses. These workshops aim to provide you with the solution and guide to the challenges of incorporating Sustainability into corporate development. You’ll learn skills and strategies to meet your stakeholder’s expectation, understanding social, ethical and environmental performance factor and managing social and environmental impacts.
Effective Guide to Sustainability Reporting Course
Starting & Managing Corporate Sustainability & ESG Strategy
Responsible Sourcing, Supply Chain Management & Sustainable Procurement
Come and meet our industry experts, Chan Mun Wei, Sue Meng Chan, Kavickumar Muruganathan, and learn from them! For enquiries, contact Ms Germaine at 6720 3333 or training.aventis@gmail.com.
