New GRI Database Offers Key Sustainability Information on 3,000 Companies

A wealth of sustainability data, hard to find in thousands of reports, will now be unlocked thanks to a new database launched today (Wednesday 9 November 2011) by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). The new Sustainability Disclosure Database includes data on the sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) transparency of more than 3,000 thousand companies worldwide.
 
Sustainability performance data is increasingly important to markets worldwide. In 1975, on average 80 percent of a company’s value came from tangible capital – finances and assets. Today, on average 80 percent of a company’s value is intangible – for example, customer trust, brand value and stakeholder relations.
 
The new database will enable companies, investors, analysts and other stakeholders to compare and analyze data from reports for free, getting a better picture of companies’ sustainability strategy and performance, long-term viability and impacts on society and nature.
 
“Financial figures are no longer enough to get the full picture of a company’s performance,” says Ernst Ligteringen, chief executive of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). “Stakeholders of all sorts want to take a company’s sustainability performance into account too, to have an idea of the long-term viability of the organization.
 
“There is a wealth of sustainability information in thousands of reports from companies around the world that is currently not easy to access. The new database will make this information easily accessible, enabling companies and investors to benchmark and analyze transparency.”
 
Any organization can upload a sustainability report and profile information to the database. The new Sustainability Disclosure Database features sustainability reports – standalone and integrated reports – from organizations and companies around the world, including those that follow the GRI Guidelines.
 
Now users can compare the level of transparency of companies, benchmarking by sector, size and location. People who are interested in organizational sustainability data can find out what indicators companies are reporting on, and how their transparency compares to other companies.
 
The database is a hub for sustainability disclosure, featuring sustainability reports that use the GRI Guidelines and those that follow other guidance. The database includes references to sustainability guidance from different organizations, including the Carbon Disclosure Project, ISO, the OECD and the UN Global Compact. GRI plans to expand the scope and depth of its data collection and analytical functionality over time.
 
“We may be witnessing the most important transformation in corporate transparency and disclosure in recent decades,” says José Luis Blasco Vázquez, partner in charge of Climate Change and Sustainability Services at KPMG for EMA. “A significant percentage of the hundred largest global asset managers already take into account non-financial criteria when building investment portfolios. This database assists investors in accessing more robust and comparable information, bringing sustainability data into closer alignment to financial reporting data.”
 
The database was built with the support of KPMG Spain and its software provider Baetica. A global team of 22 GRI Data Partners collect information from companies in their region, populating the Sustainability Disclosure Database with information.
 
Available in English and Spanish, the database enables companies to upload information and link to their reports. This provides companies with a powerful tool, helping them engage with stakeholders and get feedback on their reports and performance through links with social media.

The Sustainability Disclosure Database