New Corporate Governance Model From UNEP-Industry Partnership

By Catherine Saez

A corporate sustainability-centred model of governance is the subject of a new report issued by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Finance Initiative, a UN-private sector initiative.

Published in the margins of the International Corporate Governance Network’s annual conference, the report [pdf], presents a new model of “integrated governance.” It was written by the Asset Management Working Group of the UNEP Finance Initiative (UNDP FI).

UNEP FI is a global partnership between UNEP and the financial sector.

The report seeks to “identify corporate governance practices that could promote a durable culture of sustainability within corporations.”

According to the report, “Integrated governance is the system by which companies are directed and controlled, in which sustainability issues are integrated in a way that ensures value creation for the company and beneficial results for all stakeholders in the long term.”

The report underlines the benefits for society that have come from entrepreneurs and corporations, fuelling “unprecedented economic growth and raising billions of people out of poverty by creating job opportunities.” However, it advocates for “the development of a sustainable strategy, one that enables a company to create value for its shareholders, while at the same time contributing to a sustainable society.”

Examples and case studies are included in the report, in particular three case studies of firms that shows elements of integrated governance. These include: US chipmaker Intel, French food-products multinational organisation Danone, and US biotechnology company Biogen Idec.