Sustainability networking forum - upcoming events

2023 – The year of sustainability risk

In 2022, the Sustainability Networking Forum was focused on learning and laying the foundations, preparing for change. In 2023, we expect that companies will face greater expectations to demonstrate performance against environmental, social and governance (ESG) measures from stakeholders, financiers, shareholders and buyers.

Staying in step with the rapidly changing landscape while collaborating to achieve sustainability transformation will be a strong focus for organisations and the subject of our sustainability networking forums.

Information regarding speakers will be released closer to the time.

All events will be hybrid, so they can be joined online or attended in-person at BDO in Perth

28 June 2023

Climate risk & reporting

Hosted in conjunction with the CA ANZ Sustainability Group

Over the past few years, companies have faced an ‘alphabet soup’ of reporting frameworks when looking to disclose their climate-related and other sustainability metrics. The formation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), following COP26 in Glasgow, was born from strong market demand for high-quality, comprehensive, and consistent sustainability disclosures.

The ISSB has released Exposure Drafts IFRS S1 - General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information and IFRS S2 - Climate-related Disclosures. Both are expected to be formally issued as standards in the ISSB’s launch week being held from 26-30 June 2023.

So, what does this mean in practice? What are the practical issues of implementing S1 and S2 for companies that are required to comply? What changes will businesses need to make to capture the required data? Where and when should these disclosures be made? And how might non-mandated companies along the supply chain be impacted?

Join us for a panel discussion where we’ll delve into these questions and more.

Panel:

  • Dr Lyndie Bayne (CA ANZ, Senior Lecturer, UWA Business School) - Facilitator
  • Dr. Rocio Bona (Decarbonlogy)
  • Jane Gouvernet (Sustainability Advisory, BDO)
  • Tanya Kerkvliet (Sustainability, KPMG)
  • Joseph Daniels (Rio Tinto)

16 March 2023

Sustainable finance. Opportunities on both sides of the coin

Sustainability parameters are setting a new tone for business, particularly in the finance arena. Led by the EU through the new Sustainable Finance Directive Regulation (SFDR), where asset managers are required to disclose information about the ESG risks in their portfolios and how they address them, we’re seeing the explosion of ‘sustainable’ or ‘green’ finance and one of the biggest reallocations of capital seen in our lifetime.

Meanwhile, financial institutions in Australia and globally are under intense pressure to reduce their exposure to climate, environmental and social risks including reducing their emissions in line with their commitments to the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero. This has led to the development of new financial instruments and stringent rules to access capital. How financial institutions and investors connect on ESG-driven capital is still evolving, and greenwashing is problematic. But there are opportunities to support ‘net zero’ and the energy transition.

Join us for this discussion as we explore the opportunities on both sides of the coin.

Panelists:

  • Catherine Bell - Principal Sustainability BDO in Australia.
  • Jacques de Haan - Director, Sustainable Finance, Commonwealth Bank
    Alex Humphrey - Head of Impact Finance, Impact Seed
    Nicholas Boyd-Mathews - Chief Investment Officer, Eden Asset Management.

Article: Sustainable finance: Transforming financial relationships

2022 Series

26 October 2022

How the globalisation of sustainability is redrawing tradelines

Right now, governments, institutions, industries and communities worldwide are grappling with the challenge of reducing emissions, requiring a whole-of-system rebuild to divert consumption and production patterns away from carbon. Failure to foresee the emerging global reporting requirements could see businesses buckle under the new standards, which will undoubtedly impact businesses here in Australia. Read more

Panellists:

  • Catherine Bell - Sustainability Principal, BDO in Australia
  • Karen Baum - Sustainability & ESG Advisory Lead, BDO in the USA
  • Karien Erasmus - Associate Director and Sustainability Lead, BDO in South Africa
  • Viola Möllner - Partner in Sustainability Services, BDO in Germany

Article: Sustainability reporting: a global quagmire

25 August 2022

Why mastering your ESG data will be critical to corporate strategy

Non-financial reporting is driving a step-change not only in reporting practices but also in corporate strategy with ESG data and evidence-based disclosures being used as strategic decision-making tools. The ways in which companies report on sustainability, as well as the auditability of their disclosures, are being scrutinised by a growing number of vested stakeholders, which should encourage companies to invest in a robust program of activating and embedding sustainability across their organisation.

Panellists:

  • Catherine Bell - Sustainability Principal, BDO in Australia
  • Andrew Gazal - CEO & Founder, ESGTech
  • Lambros Siamos - Executive General Manager, Georgiou
  • Patrick Mutz - Managing Director, Image Resources
  • Peter Dawson - Director of Strategy, Lycopodium.

Article: ESG data: you can’t manage what you don’t measure

21 June 2022

The Decarbonisation Challenge

While carbon is the new liability on the balance sheet, many are still grappling to understand their emissions profile, much less what the embedded carbon is in their products and services (Scope 3). Policy and regulation is evolving fast, quickly making this a leadership issue. As a result of the transition to low carbon, new business partnerships, supply chains, products and services will emerge disrupting business as we know it.

Panellists:

Article: The decarbonisation challenge

4 May 2022

Communicating Sustainability

Communicating sustainability has become fraught for companies as stakeholders continue to demand increasing accountability and transparency across their business operations and activities, at the same time when clarity around reporting requirements is unclear and evolving. In this session we will be hearing the views from three very different professionals, who will help provide insights on how your company can manage its own sustainability narrative.

Panellists:

  • Catherine Bell - Sustainability Principal, BDO in Australia
  • Dr Sandy Chong – Director, UN WA
  • Anthony Hasluck - Managing Director, Clarity Communications
  • Jane Gouvernet - Director, Corporate Finance, BDO in Australia.

Article: Risks and opportunities of communicating your sustainability story

3 March 2022

Get Sustainability Ready

At our inaugural launch of our BDO Sustainability Networking Forum, we will lead with some insights from speakers who have been immersed in understanding how sustainability and ESG will play an increasing imperative role in doing business.

Panellists:

  • Catherine Bell - Sustainability Principal, BDO in Australia
  • Peter Bradford – MD & CEO, IGO
  • Ivy Chen – Manager Corporate CSA Global, Director Horizon Power
  • Nicholas Boyd-Mathews - Chief Investment Officer, Eden Asset Management

Article: How ‘Sustainability Ready’ is Western Australia

 

For any further questions, please contact Perth.Events@bdo.com.au 

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