Ethical Corporation’s editor reflects on some of the big stories in the July-August issue

One of the inescapable global challenges is population growth, and its many consequences. Not least among these is where we’re all going to live. Best estimates are that the world’s cities will need to find space for another three billion people by 2050, with all the difficulties of infrastructure and public services that this will bring. The situation is most acute in countries such as China, where the number of cities with a population of 500,000 or more has jumped from 51 in 1980 to 236 in 2010, and on to a predicted 343 by 2025.

As for most challenges, rapidly increasing urbanisation also presents opportunities for business to develop the systems that will allow urban areas to expand in as sustainable a way as possible. And communications technology and connectivity is emerging as a prime driver. Huge amounts of data are now generated about our everyday lives, by personal smart devices or by sensors on physical infrastructure. If this can all be analysed and put to practical use then the potential benefits are enormous, for energy grid construction, automated traffic systems, housing provision, and everything else. 

Already some cities are trialling such new techniques – and their success does depend on close and effective cooperation between the private and public sectors. It’s a prime example where authorities should put in place the market for innovation and allow businesses to come up with the ideas and innovation required. See if you agree: here’s our story on sustainable cities.

Elsewhere this month, we reflect on the impact of the Global Reporting Initiative’s long awaited new G4 guidelines. Announced with some fanfare at GRI’s recent annual conference in Amsterdam, they represent a significant shift in approach. Among the changes, the old “application levels” from previous GRI guidelines have gone. New is an onus on reporting companies to focus on the things that really matter to their stakeholders – in other words materiality.

Reaction to G4 has been, inevitably, mixed. Some welcome the move to concentrate on what’s actually important. Others point out that the G4 guidelines are still very complex, and that companies can, and do, spend an inordinate amount of time and resources on sustainability reporting. There are, of course, other games in town now. The International Integrated Reporting Commission and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board offer alternatives to GRI’s approach. The ultimate success of any of them, of course, will come down to how many companies follow their guidance, and also in the quality, transparency and relevance of the resulting reporting.

Excellence in reporting was just one of the qualities rewarded at the recent Ethical Corporation Awards ceremony for 2013. We feature some of the winners this month. They come from a wide variety of sectors and demonstrate that sustainable business is indeed smart business.

And, as usual, in this issue we also have all the regular comment and analysis, including reviews of the latest reporting from FedEx and Ericsson.

Editor review  Ian Welsh  magazine analysis