Making ESG Work for Sustainability

-Strengthening Governance to Accelerate ESG Journey-

16 & 17 February 2023 (Webinar)

14:00 (Korean Standard Time, GMT+9)

Background

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues continue to gain momentum. Businesses worldwide are increasingly recognizing the importance of incorporating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations into their strategies, risk management and governance practices for long-term success.[1] However, when analyzing environmental, social, and governance factors, the “G” component often receives little attention over climate risk, societal responsibility, and other E and S risks and opportunities.

It is fundamental to understand the significance of corporate governance as the driving force behind the other two elements of ESG.[2] Building strong ESG governance practices - the processes and structures that facilitate firms to set targets and measure and report their performance against those targets[3] - is crucial to providing the accountability and support necessary for the successful execution of the ESG strategy.[4]

The "G" relates to the governance factors of decision-making, from sovereigns’ policymaking to the responsibilities among different actors in corporations, including the board of directors, shareholders, managers, and customers. Governance factors point down the rules and procedures for countries and corporations and enable investors to screen for good governance practices as they would for environmental and social factors. Particularly, in the face of firms’ false steps and raising awareness of global diversity and income inequality, corporate governance is a core element of ESG.[5]

In addition, ESG factors can be practically translated to Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) on the corporate level as parts of ESG considerations can be assigned to all 17 goals. Companies can align their ESG strategy with SDGs, including assessing, mapping and setting goals, strategic integration and collaboration, and reporting. Ultimately, organizations and investors actively focusing on the SDG Agenda 2030 are more likely to improve their ESG scores and discover new growth and development opportunities.[6]

As we near 2030, business portfolios must align with sustainability policies to guide decision-making, while published ESG reports must enhance transparency. Therefore, embedding ESG leadership and accountability across the organizations requires establishing effective governance structures and practices. Without adequate structures to hold key stakeholders accountable, long-term ESG success is prone to be limited.

Event Objectives

For the capacity-building webinar, this event will:

·         Offer a venue for knowledge sharing on current status and issues of leveraging ESG strategies for sustainable future and through good governance

·         Provide an opportunity to gain insights from experts on different forms of good practices regarding ESG governance

Learning Objectives

After this event, participants will be able to:

·         recognize how ESG principals, governing frameworks, and strategies are evolving

·         Integrate ESG factors in conducting fundamental analyses

·         understand that “Governance” as the core of sustainable finance and management system that enables policy-making and businesses to accelerate the shift toward sustainability

Target Audience

The webinar is open to personnel and representatives from governmental organizations, private sector, non-profit, civil and private sectors, the academia, and research entities, including focal points for:

·         ESG strategy, ESG management, ESG data and reporting, governance over ESG factors.

This event is also open to the public interested in establishing ESG strategies, management, and governance.

Event Details

·         Event type:         Webinar (online event)

·         Date:                  16 & 17 February 2023, 14:00 (Korean Standard Time, GMT +9)

·         Organizer:          UNITAR CIFAL Jeju / Jeju International Training Center

·         Certificate:         UNITAR CIFAL Jeju / JITC will issue a certificate of participation

·         Programme:                                                    

 *The program is subject to change. 

Organizer

UNITAR CIFAL Jeju / Jeju International Training Center http://cifaljeju.org/

Inquiries

United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)

Centre International de Formation des Autorités et Leaders (CIFAL)

UNITAR CIFAL Jeju

Ms. Sungeun Ann

Program Officer

Tel: 82)064-735-6573

Email: seann.jitc@cifaljeju.org