ESG and sustainability take focus in China development goals

With sustainable development and ESG becoming increasingly essential, scholars, business people, artists and press discussed sustainable business and art empowerment at a forum on Thursday.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) as a concept is becoming more well-known amid the trend towards sustainable and green development.

China's "dual carbon" goals – its pledge to peak its carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, is one example of its determination to strengthen international cooperation in the fight against climate change. It has called for all industries and communities to place more emphasis on sustainable development.

Zheng Yannong, adviser of the China International Public Relations Association and former secretary general of the Development Research Center of the State Council and Institute of World Development, said in a video speech at the forum: "In the face of a global crisis that has hit the economy hard and shaken international relations, a good company has the responsibility to play a leading role in ESG, and the society should treat such companies and organizations with the respect they deserve."

Bao Cunkuan, professor of the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at Fudan University, believes that ESG in businesses should and can resonate with the green transformation of the national development pattern.

In terms of evaluation, aside from the current systems such as the ISO 14000 family of standards, Bao suggests establishing a Chinese ESG paradigm based on the development community of "region-industry-supply chain," and the evaluation system with indicators for an enterprise's capacity and position in its sector, the gap between the company and the industry leaders, and its progress and improvement.