The data and divergence deluge and chaos in ESG data is not a weakness, but the plural approaches are a strength as it is a ‘Whole of Society’ problem. How can we approach wicked problems through a simplistic lens?
Author: changethinker
Born and raised in Mumbai, India with an undergrad degree from Oman and a masters degree from the National University of Singapore. I am an Environmental Professional with a passion for Sustainability, Social Innovation and Governance related issues. A Change Agent in the making who believes that small is beautiful and that impact can be achieved -one soul at a time.
Eurocentric Notions of Net Zero.
The faulty assumption behind the Eurocentric understanding of net zero transitions is that all of us have 24×7 power. Many parts of the world are energy insecure and energy inequity should be addressed as a part of the ‘just’ transition.
Many communities in mining areas in fragile states are fueling the metals needed for the EV race. Is access to energy for them a part of the net zero journey?
Responsible mining is a part of net zero transition by ensuring the dignity of communities through inclusive community development plans via marshalling of impact funds.
‘S’ for Social License to Operate
The ‘S’ in the ESG trifecta stands for Social, which is a shorthand of sorts. Social is ‘Social License to Operate’ where buy-in from your employees, consumers, communities, and vendors in a Global Value Chain is a dynamic process, and it needs a F5 routinely.
With the advent of the digital, each stakeholder is a whistleblower with a camera phone. Reputational risk impacts the brand, and in turn valuation. That should be a material rationale for the ‘fuzzy’ S.
A lot of companies conduct social listening to gauge sentiment to measure reputations.
The Sustainable Finance Spectrum
Funds which integrate ESG factors can be considered as ‘shallow green’, while additionality if proven can be categorized as ‘light green’
Authentic if the funds are directed towards the just transition, then it can be considered as ‘dark green’.
Sustainable finance spans the spectrum. The right nomenclature is key to avoid green washing.
The ‘S’ in ESG
BHR, DEI & Human Capital matters or the ‘S’ in the ESG, the cultural elements, the so-called soft variables are indeed the blood which runs in the circulatory system of responsible capitalism. There is ample scope for innovation in methods for quantification too, yet the fuzzy nature of the ‘S’ in terms of transnational torts amplify the risk, which ESG is a meta framework towards capturing non-financial risk.
Water Risk.
Water Risk as a measure of local and global materiality risks, as the virtual water count are better tangible metrics than carbon as the immediacy is felt.
ESG M&E
ESG is compliance for a purpose yet is a window for innovation. Interdisciplinary at best, the strength of the meta framework is reporting as it is drawn towards transparency. Impact Reporting is like what peers in the nonprofit space have been doing for decades in Monitoring & Evaluation, where every grant dollar is accounted for.
ESG professionals can exchange notes with the development sphere on how to better report their E&S spending.
#innovation #nonprofit #development #esgreporting
‘Sassoon Dock Art Project’ Photo Essay: A ‘Dock side Reading’
Indian Ocean Bombay come alive. The Sassoon Docks, a reminder of an Imperial Bombay- a Port Trust Area thankfully away from the gaze of the real estate sector have been brought into the spotlight of the Insta generation through art, which has converted the derelict dock into a reimagination through the art of the city, opening registers and invigorating commerce in the Colaba area, as the art set flock to the shores over the weekend. The title of this photo essay draws from Scholar Isabel Hofmeyr’s book of the same name that thinks with hydrocolonialism as a lens that lies the Indian Ocean from Bombay to Natal.
The politics of resistance is subtle in the gentrified global veneer. Water centers Bombay and the curators bring it out well. Hydropolitics as has been written by Nikhil Anand in the context of politics in Mumbai in particular the leaking pipes exhibit depicted a Mumbai which relies on time-based water supplies for sustenance. The exhibits on waves and the relationships of the coast with the city, the artwork and the video montages spoke to an imaginary of the city that has been often lost in the territorial linguistic stasis of politics. A reclaiming of the hydro frontier through art, even of the elitist sort is a relief. The ‘East Indian’ coastal communities of the city, the ‘orang asli’ of the place- have found a register through the art spaces in a roundabout manner. The politics behind art is well layered in the curation. Dalit poetry finds a stage on the walls of the art spaces, to give voice to erased actors.
Curation has a scale and ambition with decay and life sitting together. The writing on the exhibits is sometimes better than the exhibit itself. The writing describing the installations is exquisite and appeals to my sensibilities as an ethnographer.
The festival has an Art Jameel Dubai Indian Ocean Cosmopolitanism aesthetic show cases a Mumbai which rises above its retail politics.
Solving the Hard Problems.
Solving hard problems is always hard. Wicked problems such as climate adaptation or preparing for the next pandemic will need a different level of thinking, doing, and building.
The question is what are the incentives available for the actors to configure together to make sure there is enough in the process for all?
ESG as an Actor Network
The pillars of the ESG trifecta are all deep subject matter areas in themselves. Yet they make sense or matter not for the green premium but as a calibration factor. Environmental & Social elements are both externalities which are priced in a fashion to internalize them. The Internal Price of Carbon or a Biodiversity Price in the future through impact accounting are mechanisms. Carbon and Biodiversity are tangled with each other. Governance is an input. ESG are tied in through an ANT network as nodes in a risk map.
ESG risk and impact accounting are joined at the hip. Reporting to Ratings Journey has impact accounting somewhere in the middle of the continuum. ESG as a future making approach channelizing funds for a just energy transition is a real end goal. ESG is a core aspect of the ‘Just’ in Just Energy Transition. Making sense of the interlinkages is vital as understanding is patchy at best even among practitioners.
Change Thinker 