Evidenciação Ambiental: uma análise dos relatórios de sustentabilidade da Usina Hidrelétrica Itaipu com base na Global Reporting Initiative – GRI ## Environmental Disclosure: an analysis of the sustainability reports of the Itaipu Hydroelectric Plant based on the Global Reporting Initiative – GRI

Considerando que o setor de hidrelétricas causa impactos ambientais de larga escala e que a evidenciação ambiental vem se tornando cada vez mais relevante para as organizações, a presente pesquisa teve por objetivo avaliar a qualidade da evidenciação ambiental praticada nos relatórios de sustentabilidade da Usina Hidrelétrica Binacional Itaipu. Quanto à abordagem, este estudo fundamenta-se na pesquisa qualitativa, e quanto ao objeto, este estudo se classifica como uma pesquisa documental. Para atingir o objetivo desta pesquisa, a coleta dos dados foi proporcionada pelos relatórios de sustentabilidade da Usina Hidrelétrica Itaipu do período de 2014 a 2019, a partir da confrontação dos princípios apresentados pela Global Reporting Initiative para a elaboração do relatório com o conteúdo dos relatórios divulgados pela Itaipu. A análise dos relatórios indica que a Itaipu apresentou falhas quanto a aderência do princípio “comparabilidade”, ao omitir informação sobre os valores investidos nos projetos analisados, fazendo com que a leitura do stakeholder ficasse prejudicada, entretanto, é possível identificar que a Itaipu buscou manter-se alinhada com os demais princípios analisados. O presente estudo contribuiu por buscar preencher a lacuna sobre a análise de evidenciação ambiental de uma organização de relevância social como a Itaipu Binacional.ABSTRACTConsidering that the hydroelectric sector causes large-scale environmental impacts, and that environmental disclosure is becoming increasingly relevant for organizations, this research aimed to evaluate the quality of environmental disclosure practiced in the sustainability reports of the Binational Itaipu Hydroelectric Power Plant . As for the approach, this study is based on qualitative research, and as for the object, this study is classified as documentary research. To achieve the objective of this research, data collection was provided by the sustainability reports of the Itaipu Hydroelectric Power Plant from 2014 to 2019, based on the confrontation of the principles presented by the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines with the content of the reports disclosed by Itaipu. The analysis of the reports indicates that Itaipu failed to adhere to the "comparability" principle, by omitting information on the amounts invested in the projects analyzed, causing the stakeholder reading to be impaired, however, it is possible to identify that Itaipu sought to maintain aligned with the other principles analyzed. This study contributed by seeking to fill the gap on the analysis of environmental disclosure in an organization of social relevance such as Itaipu Binational.

Ethical environment, accountability, and sustainability reporting: What is the connection in the hospitality and tourism industry?

Drawing on institutional theory, this study tests how the ethical behaviors of firms, in interaction with public officials and through the strength of accountability regulations, influence sustainability reporting practices in the hospitality and tourism (H&T) sector. The results indicate that firms operating in a highly ethical business environment are less likely than those in a less ethical environment to disclose a sustainability report. However, accountability yields the opposite result; firms established in environments characterized by high accountability are more likely than low accountability environments to issue a sustainability report, which implies a complementary effect between the strength of the accountability and the firms’ sustainability disclosures. This verifies that the weakness or strength of informal and formal institutional forces exert considerable influence on firms’ desire to carry out sustainability reporting. However, this influence is not true of the acquisition of external assurance statements and following Global Reporting Initiative guidelines, with which accountability has a negative and insignificant association, respectively.

Stakeholder engagement practices and impression management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the substantiveness of stakeholder engagement by examining voluntary disclosures tied to the engagement process. The objective is to draw a portrait of stakeholder engagement practices and determine whether they genuinely contribute to informing stakeholders or whether they are simply intended to manage stakeholders’ impressions. Design/methodology/approach The authors performed an exploratory content analysis on 113 sustainability reports published in 2018 in the Global Reporting Initiative database. The authors investigated disclosures tied to consulted stakeholders, communication modes and material issues resulting from the engagement process. The authors then assessed the substantiveness of these disclosures to determine the extent of the impression management tactics deployed in the stakeholder engagement disclosures made by Canadian companies. Findings Data analysis showed that more than a third of Canadian firms tend to make generic disclosures on their stakeholders’ engagement. As well, almost half the engagement modes disclosed are unidirectional and fewer than 33% of Canadian companies disclose on relevant sustainability issues. Furthermore, only 26% of the sample seek assurance on the information disclosed. Overall, the authors note an important trend in impression management used in sustainability reporting and underscore a potentially significant sectoral effect in the tactics used. Originality/value These data provide new insight into stakeholder engagement processes and highlight the strategies used by Canadian companies to manage their stakeholders’ impressions rather than their expectations. The study also contributes to a better understanding of the underexplored stakeholder engagement process and provides regulatory organisations with deepened insights to better frame stakeholder engagement disclosures.

Responsabilidad social corporativa en instituciones financieras del Ecuador

La incorporación de la Responsabilidad Social Corporativa (RSC) en Ecuador, es un tema de reciente interés. En esta problemática se embarca el sistema financiero ecuatoriano que busca orientar sus actividades considerando las expectativas de los diferentes grupos de interés afectados por sus acciones para contribuir al desarrollo sostenible. El objetivo de este documento es realizar un análisis comparativo de la responsabilidad social corporativa de las instituciones financieras (IF) del Ecuador. Por esta razón se toma de referencia tres de las cuatro IF consideradas como grandes, al ser estas las que aplican las normas de responsabilidad social de Global Reporting Initiative (GRI 4) e ISO26000. Sus memorias permitieron la aplicación de un instrumento de medición. Para la categoría de economía se realizó la comparación de sus balances donde destaca la IF que generó mayor rentabilidad a sus inversionistas. En la categoría social, se mide la percepción de sus colaboradores y destaca aquella institución donde estos perciben un mejor ambiente laboral. Y, por último, en la categoría medio ambiente se analizó los datos de las memorias de las tres instituciones y por medio de un check list basado en las GRI 4 se determinó la institución que más cumple con los índices de RSC.

Board committees and non-financial information assurance services

The objective of this study is to examine the role that the specialized committees, created within the board of directors, and the auditor play in relation to the hiring of a non-financial information assurance service and in relation to the choices of the assurance provider for such non-financial information. Specifically, this study analyses the effect of the independence and specialisation of the audit committee, the existence of a CSR committee, and the reputation of the financial auditor associated with its classification as Big4. The results indicate that those responsible for financial information do not show interest in contracting an assurance service, especially if it is realized by an accountant provider, except that the information is standardised according to the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines and the contracted service is comparable to the financial audit standards, has assurance for a reasonable/high level, and is carried out according to the ISAE3000 standard.

Reporting the Social Value Generated by European Universities for Stakeholders: Applicability of the Global Reporting Initiative Model

Universities are increasingly being asked to contribute to addressing the significant local and global challenges, such as those identified in the 2030 Agenda. Set in this framework, universities need to account for the social value they generate through their activities, particularly from the perspective of their contribution to different stakeholders. This approach requires, first of all, that the main stakeholders are identified. Relationship and dialogue mechanisms then need to be established which can help guide universities to choose activities which can better meet the needs of their stakeholders. The current paper analyses the potential of integrated reports, and triple bottom line reports, as an instrument for reporting on aspects that go beyond the financial sphere, including economic, social and environmental aspects. Specifically, the paper focuses on studying the viability of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for reporting the value that European universities generate for their stakeholders. The results show, firstly, that the universities in the sample do not sufficiently address these questions in their reports. Internal stakeholders are prominent in their reports, with the interaction between them and the universities being generally unidirectional. References to value generated are limited, and usually refer to the economic value. However, some examples of good practices are identified that could be used to improve standards of reporting, especially in universities committed to integrated reporting initiatives, in order to better reflect the social value.

Pessimistic Tone in Earnings Announcement and CSR Disclosure: Exploring the Interacting Role of CEO Busyness

This study analyzes the relationship between the pessimistic tone in earnings announcements and CSR disclosures interacted by CEO busyness. This study used 191 observations from 74 firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) database from 2016–2019. Grounded in signaling theory, we hypothesize that a pessimistic tone in earning announcements will increase CSR disclosure. We also hypothesize that busy CEOs strengthen this relationship. We use the ordinary least squares to analyze and answer our hypotheses. This study showed that the use of a pessimistic tone in the income statement in the discussion report and management analysis (MD&A) is related positively and significantly to CSR disclosure. This study also found that busy CEOs strengthen those relationships. Our implication is that CSR disclosure in our sample is only measured based on the information presented in the sustainability report. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to investigate the relationship between the pessimistic tone in earning announcements and CSR disclosures interacted by CEO busyness. In addition, this study provides insight into current performance disclosure practices in MD&A reports and CSR reports that managers can use to safeguard the firm’s reputation.

METODOLOGIAS PARA ANÁLISE DE SUSTENTABILIDADE: REFLEXÕES SOBRE ESTUDOS DE IMPACTO DE VIZINHANÇA NAS CAPITAIS DO SUDESTE DO BRASIL

Não há dúvidas de que a temática sustentabilidade é de extrema relevância para a qualidade de vida nas cidades, contudo, até o surgimento do Estatuto das Cidades, em 2001, o termo não era abordado nas legislações brasileiras. Nesta mesma legislação, são estabelecidos instrumentos legais, técnicos e regulatórios visando disciplinar o uso do solo urbano, como por exemplo, o Plano Diretor e o Estudo de Impacto de Vizinhança (EIV). Estes, apesar de intrinsicamente relacionados à sustentabilidade, não estabelecem metodologias de mensuração da mesma. Logo, reconhecendo a importância desta temática, o objetivo deste artigo foi investigar aspectos de sustentabilidade e desenvolvimento sustentável dentre políticas públicas urbanas nacionais, mais especificamente, as legislações de EIV das capitais estaduais da região Sudeste. Foram também analisadas as algumas metodologias de mensuração de sustentabilidade - Ecological Footprint, Dashboard of Sustainability, Barometer of Sustainability, Global Reporting Initiative e PESMU - sendo possível verificar que o aspecto essencial que diferencia as metodologias é a quantidade de dimensões incluída nas análises, bem como a escolha das mesmas. Dentre os municípios analisados, apenas São Paulo prevê o EIV relacionando-o ao desenvolvimento sustentável, contudo, nenhum deles apresentou diretrizes para garantir sustentabilidade, como metodologias de mensuração da mesma.

Technological and non-technological trends in fashion eco-innovations

PurposeThe fashion industry is diverse and demands a high amount of resources and labor for its operation. It has powerful tools that can positively impact the environment and society as a whole. In this sense, it becomes necessary for fashion to adopt sustainable strategies quickly. One way would be the adoption of eco-innovations by companies in the sector. The objective of this research is to identify the main eco-innovation initiatives carried out by companies in the fashion sector and to verify what the trend is in the sector in relation to the types of eco-innovation, whether technological or non-technological in nature.Design/methodology/approachTo meet the objective, the sector’s sustainability reports are analyzed based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) initiative. The method used to treat the data is content analysis. The authors chose to use the GRI-G4 and GRI-Standards versions of the GRI structure, as they include topics relevant to its stakeholders. The analysis based on these criteria considers 18 reports prepared by four companies (Cia Hering, Grupo Malwee, Dudalina and Lojas Renner).FindingsFrom the data analysis, it was noticed that eco-innovations of technological trends prevail in Brazilian fashion, in the first place, those of process (24.56%), followed by eco-innovations of product (10.53%). The pressure exerted by internal or external stakeholders will be fueled by the current scenario of sustainable development, positively influencing the adoption of eco-innovation. This characteristic can be attributed to the fashion sector, since technological eco-innovations overlap with non-technological ones in all the years that make up the analysis.Research limitations/implicationsAs limitations of this research, it is worth mentioning the availability of GRIs in the fashion sector. Even considering it a step forward, noting that larger companies support the adoption of these reports, it is important to highlight that only four companies make up the available database (Cia Hering, Lojas Renner, Dudalina and Malwee). From the adoption of the dissemination of sustainability reports by other organizations, the base could be expanded.Practical implicationsFrom this study, practical questions emerge that can contribute to managers and companies in the Brazilian fashion sector. Initially, the focus on eco-innovations is predominantly related to the technological component, with an emphasis on process eco-innovations. In this sense, business actions seek to resolve the accusations normally attributed to the sector, such as the adoption of unsustainable practices. For example, in cotton production, firms use large amounts of pesticides and water, despite the sector being accused of not taking proper responsibility regarding sustainability related issues.Social implicationsInvestment in eco-innovations indicates a positive attitude and change resulting from pressure and the need to return the market to society’s demands for more sustainable production technologies with less environmental impact.Originality/valueA originalidade do estudo se dá na sistematização de um modelo de análise de GRIs aplicado para mensurar eco inovações na moda. Por meio da metodologia aplicada é possível ressaltar que eco inovações de tendência tecnológica prevalecem no setor, primeiramente em processos e logo em produtos.

Maturity Models and Sustainable Indicators—A New Relationship

This study aims to investigate the relationship between maturity models adopted by information technology companies and the sustainability indicators that are currently considered decision-making factors for investors and customers. The research is based on previous studies, Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT), and Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards, and indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) defined in 2015 by the United Nations. As a result of the intersection between the GRI and SDG indicators with COBIT requirements, a set of 50 indicators covering four dimensions of sustainability was identified. In the environmental dimension, 11 indicators were identified, in the economic dimension six indicators, in social dimension 14 indicators, and, at last, in the governance dimension, there were 19 convergent indicators between COBIT and GRI. This set of 50 proposed indicators was validated by analyzing the content of the sustainability reports available on the websites of information technology companies, making it possible to relate the sustainable practices and strategies adopted by such companies with the indicators suggested in this study. Furthermore, we identified that the SDGs are incorporated into the strategic objectives of seven of the nine companies analyzed.