THE GRI FRAMEWORK OF REPORTING

GRI Global Reporting Initiative (NGO) - International

independent standards organization founded in 1997, USA. Helps organizations to report on the economic,

environmental, and social dimensions of their activities, products, and services. 

Affiliations - OECD, UNEP, United Nations Global Compact, ISO and so on.

Governance of the GRI Sustainability reporting is a more recent concept that

encourages businesses and institutions to report on their environmental performance.

As of 2015, 7,500 organizations used GRI Guidelines for the sustainability reports.

GRI IN INDIA Regional reach: India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh. Located in New Delhi. Supporters: Corporate Leaders, project based support

from local partners and hosted by BSI India Group (Head office) and TCS (Satellite office).

Focus: Mainstreaming sustainability and transparency alongside rapid economic growth

GRI FRAMEWORK Provide a holistic framework that addresses broad

performance in social, environmental and economic. Guides an organization's approach to ‘proving’ its

impact Internationally accepted flexible reporting framework. To help measure and benchmark performance, both

against their own targets and externally. GRI indicators to encourage employees to understand

and contribute to progressively better performance. The Guidelines support and integrate other tools such

as Social Accounting and the AA1000 Series.

KEY STAKEHOLDERS OF A REPORTING SYSTEM

FOUR KEY ELEMENTS IN THE FRAMEWORK

SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING GUIDELINES Consists of Principles for defining report content Ensuring the quality of reported information Standard Disclosures made up of performance indicatorsINDICATOR PROTOCOLS  Protocols provide definitions, compilation guidance etc… Assist report preparers Ensure consistency in the interpretation of the

performance indicators Users of the Guidelines should also use the Indicator

Protocols.

SECTOR SUPPLEMENTS  Guidance on how to apply them in a given

sector Sector-specific performance indicators Applicable sector supplements should be used

in additionTECHNICAL PROTOCOLS Provide guidance on issues in reporting Sector supplements and cover issues that most

organizations face during the reporting process

GRI INITIVATIVES Climate risk and opportunity A catalyst to move beyond reports SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS - To use creativity and innovation to

address development challenges and recognize the need for governments to encourage sustainability reporting

INTEGRATED REPORTING - To bridge the gap between the value of integrated thinking for executives and the reality of sustainability and financial reporting practice for organizations

FRIENDS OF PARAGRAPH 47 - Leading governments join together to commit to corporate sustainability reporting

RIO+20 - The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development REPORTING 2025 - The main issues which would be affecting companies

agendas, and consequently their public reports, by 2025. Leaders in various fields would be interviewed on subjects ranging from data technology to society and business development scenarios, and videos and analytical papers would be produced throughout the year to promote an international discussion.

GRI REPORTING OVER THE YEARS

www.globalreporting.org/resourcelibrary/GRI-Reports-List-1999-2012.zip)

GRI REPORTERS

GRI REPORTERS – INDIA Mumbai international airport Amubuja cement Jsw Maruthi- Suzuki Moser bare Bpcl Wipro Dr.Reddys laboratory Indian oil Infosys L&T Tata Groups ITC and so on..

GRI GUIDELINES DEVELOPMENT

G4: NEXT GENERATION OF REPORTING

G4 : Fourth generation of the Guidelines Launched in May 2013 Culmination of two years of extensive stakeholder consultation and dialogue

with hundreds of experts from across the world from a wide variety of sectors Structure - Two separate documents – 1) Reporting Principles and Standard

Disclosures 2) Implementation Manual Objectives To help reporters prepare sustainability reports and to make robust and

purposeful sustainability reporting standard practice Be user friendly for beginners and experienced reporters Improve technical quality with clearer definitions Align with other international reporting references Offer guidance on how to link sustainability and integrated reporting Improve data access

RESOURCES NEEDED FOR GRI REPORTING

Leadership

Proficiency skills

Staff Time

Courses, Support &

Information

INTERNAL BENEFITS OF GRI REPORTING

Increased understanding of risks and opportunities Emphasizing the link between financial and non-financial performance Influencing long term management strategy and policy, and business

plans Streamlining processes, reducing costs and improving efficiency Benchmarking and assessing sustainability performance with respect to

laws, norms, codes, performance standards, and voluntary initiatives Avoiding being implicated in publicized environmental, social and

governance failures Comparing performance internally, and between organizations and

sectors

EXTERNAL BENEFITS OF GRI REPORTING

Mitigating – or reversing – negative environmental, social and governance impacts

Improving reputation and brand loyalty Enabling external stakeholders to understand the

organization’s true value, and tangible and intangible assets

Demonstrating how the organization influences, and is influenced by, expectations about sustainable development

 DISTINCTIVE ELEMENTS OF THE GRI STANDARDS

Multi-stakeholder input : Universally applicable reporting guidance that meets the needs of all report makers and users

A record of use and endorsement : Of the world’s largest 250 corporations, 93% report on their sustainability performance and 82% of these use GRI’s Standards to do so

Governmental references and activities : 27 countries use GRI in their sustainability policies and look to us for guidance as the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting standards

Independence : Funding approach ,degree of self-sufficiency

POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS Adhering to the Guidelines can be labour intensive and

full reporting may represent a challenge for smaller organizations.

Use in the third sector is limited and some of the language and approaches are more familiar and appropriate for multinational corporations.

They provide guidance, but not accreditation, a mark or external evaluation unless combined with other tools, such as an assurance standard.

Their main focus is ‘sustainability’, e.g. reporting external impact but not necessarily focusing on positive outcomes or impacts.

GRI FRAMEWORK EFFECTIVENESS

RELIANCE GROUPS

GRI FRAMEWORK- MARUTI SUZUKI Maruti’s focus and action in social, environment and economic spheres in making

a positive and meaningful difference in stakeholders lives. 6th Sustainability report highlights initiatives to reduce stress on natural

resources. Energy costs are down by over 5% after installation of a 1MW Photovoltaic Solar

Power Plant at Manesar plant. Maruti manufacturing sites have zero waste water status. About 48% of water

requirement at a facility is met through re-cycled water. Since 2010, Maruti sends hazardous waste to the cement industry for co-

processing, eliminating the need for landfills. Has adopted GRI G4 reporting framework, though it is applicable only from 2015.

Beginning early allows Maruti to widen its reporting structure. The framework includes Economic, Environment, Labour Practices, Human Rights,

Society and Product Responsibility.

GRI FRAMEWORK - WIPRO

IT firm Wipro said that Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) has chosen the Indian outsourcing major as its member.

"At Wipro, sustainability is an integral part of its strategy and organization ethic.

Inclusion in the DJSI is a clear and strong testimony to its commitment to sustainability and its key dimensions of ecology, transparency, good governance and active corporate citizenship.

THANKYOU!