The latest edition of the annual Sustainable Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN) commissioned report – ‘S&P 100 Sustainability Reporting Comparison’ – shows a marked increase in the number of firms issuing GRI reports.
• The number of Standard and Poors (S&P) companies producing sustainability reports with performance data has increased by over a third in the past year.
• Since 2004, the number of companies making reference to GRI in their sustainability reports has more than doubled from 24 to 55 of the S&P 100.
• In 2009, the number of S&P 100 companies reporting according the GRI Guidelines increased by 25% on the previous year
• 93 of the S&P 100 now provide at least some sustainability information on their websites, up from 58 companies in 2007.
In related news, following the release of the 2010 Global 100: Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list, it has come to light that nine of the top ten reporters on the list are GRI Reporters. This list, issued annually, is compiled by Canada’s Corporate Knights with support from several investment management companies. Ernst Ligteringen, GRI Chief Executive, is on the Global 100 Council of Experts. The research is conducted using 11 key performance indicators one of which is transparency, based on ‘[the percentage] of data points on which the company provided data and level of GRI disclosure’.
