Standard Bank Group has been ranked South Africa’s “greenest” company in the 2012 Newsweek Green Rankings.
Standard Bank Group was ranked 21st globally in the Financial Sector category and 64th overall. Other South African companies included in the rankings were MTN, Bidvest and Sasol.
Newsweek, an international weekly news magazine, publishes the Green Rankings annually, focusing on the largest publicly traded companies in America (US 500 list) and worldwide (Global 500 list). Each list consists of the largest 500 companies by revenue, market capitalisation, and number of employees, as at 30 June 2012.
To produce the 2012 Green Rankings, Newsweek collaborated with leading environmental research providers, Trucost and Sustainalytics, to assess each company’s environmental footprint, management of that footprint, and transparency
Companies on each of the US 500 and Global 500 lists are ranked by their overall Green Score. This is derived from three component scores: Environmental Impact, Environmental Management, and Environmental Disclosure, weighted at 45%, 45%, and 10% respectively.
All scores are out of a possible 100. Standard Bank Group’s overall score was 71.7, with its Environmental Impact scoring 81.6 Environmental Management 58.7, and Environmental Disclosure 86.4.
More than 700 metrics, including emissions of nine key greenhouse gases, water use, solid waste disposal, and emissions that contribute to acid rain and smog, are factored into the Environmental Impact Score
The Environmental Management Score assesses how a company manages its environmental performance through policies, programmes, targets, and certifications.
The Environmental Disclosure Score evaluates the breadth and quality of company environmental reporting of their material impacts as well as company involvement in key transparency initiatives such as the Global Reporting Initiative and Carbon Disclosure Project.
Karin Ireton, Head: Sustainability Management at Standard Bank Group, says the ranking was recognition of Standard Bank Group’s approach to embedding sustainability thinking into the way it does business.
“We believe business has an important role to play in greening our economy and we are at the forefront with innovations in financing of energy efficiency, the roll out of solar water heaters and South Africa’s renewable energy programme. We are also investing in the social capital of this country, building the capabilities of our staff and partnering with others to address the need for agricultural financing and infrastructure in Africa.”
Read all about Standard Bank Group’s sustainable initiatives visit www.standardbank.com/sustainability.
Source: StandardBank.com