Summary

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Globally, the value of investments that claim to be ESG friendly has grown from $US23 trillion to $US35 trillion in 2016 and is on track to hit $US50 trillion by 2025 (ESG and impact investing statistics Australia 2022 | Finder). In Australia, responsible investment assets grew to $1.54 trillion, according to September 2022 data from the Responsible Investing Association of Australasia (RIAA). This is up from $1.28 trillion in 2020 and means 43% of the total market is managed using a responsible investment approach.

Investors increasingly demand proof that their capital is being spent in a socially responsible way. Almost a third of ESG investors say the ability to report on specific UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is one of the most important elements of fund sustainability reporting — nearly double last year’s percentage. While half say the ability to offer the full spectrum of SDG themes is important when selecting funds.

Reporting is used to demonstrate commitment to corporate responsibility and maintaining the social licence to operate: towards competitors; consumers; and investors.

Historically, sustainability tracking has been focused on diversity (of people), health and safety compliance and incident reduction, and carbon/energy usage. For listed companies, their respective securities exchange platforms have attempted to uniform reportingstandards. Certain environmental and social metrics have become standardised through legislative instruments in response to international conventions. This is slowly making its way down to non-listed companies.

The social metrics consistently tracked over time include ethical supply chain and sourcing (particularly as it relates to modern slavery) and health and safety. In recent years there has also been an increased focus on privacy and data security.

Only a small percentage of entities are disclosing on measurable objectives or representation of First Nations Peoples, those who are culturally or linguistically diverse, people with disabilities, or members of the LGBTIQA+ communit

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