The President and CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), Peter Bakker, will announce today that Sustainable Business Australia is relaunching as the Business Council for Sustainable Development Australia (BCSD Australia).
Established in 1991, Sustainable Business Australia (SBA) has been the peak body for Australian businesses committed to sustainability and acting on climate change. It is a CEO-led coalition of leading corporate names and organisations. It was recently announced that Dr John Hewson from the Australian National University had joined the SBA Board of Directors and Dr Hewson is the Chair-elect for the newly named BCSD Australia.
Peter Bakker will announce the creation of BCSD Australia as he delivers the Fiona Wain Oration today with Australia’s sustainable business leaders in attendance. Fiona Wain was the second CEO of SBA. The Oration was established in remembrance of her impressive legacy in leading sustainability action in the business sector.
“The Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement signal the need for a deep change in the way our economies work, and in the way our energy, mobility, urbanisation, food and social systems contribute to planetary and societal well-being. We advocate that business has a leading role to play as the world embarks upon this vital journey,” said Mr Bakker. “In fact, forward-looking companies are not only integrating sustainability at the core of their strategy, decision-making, and disclosures; as long-standing masters of innovation, they are also ideally positioned to become the implementation partner of choice to capture opportunities across systems change.”
“In Australia – and around the world – it is the time for greater corporate leadership. BCSD Australia will be instrumental in accelerating the transition to a future where more sustainable business in this country is more successful.”
“Boards need to ensure that the businesses they oversee are transparent, and management needs to disclose investment grade, forward-looking and decision-useful ESG information to meet the demands of their investors and better understand their risks and opportunities, while adhering to their fiduciary duties. Doing so will allow investors to integrate the sustainability risks in their valuation models and as such lower the cost of capital for more sustainable companies,” Mr Bakker said.
ENDS.
For more information, please contact:
Andrew Petersen
CEO, Sustainable Business Australia
t: +61 (0)2 8005 0780
m: +61 (0)412 545 994
About Sustainable Business Australia
SBA was established in Australia in 1991 and is the peak body for support and advocacy for sustainable business activities in Australia. In 2014 SBA was appointed Australia’s Global Partner for World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and in 2018 selected as the Australian focal point for collaboration with the Natural Capital Coalition.
SBA’s members include leading Australian businesses, from all sectors, who share a commitment to economic, environmental and social development. SBA represents member companies, public sector enterprises and institutions, BINGOs and community organisations, which in turn represent 100,000+ Australian employees.