1

The Value of Comprehensive Reporting

and Stakeholder Engagement

Results from the Facility Reporting Project

National Environmental Partnership SummitMay 8, 2007

Beth Ginsberg - www.ceres.org

2

What is the Facility Reporting Project (FRP)?

The FRP is multi-stakeholder initiative to develop a generally-accepted, consistent, comparable and credible sustainability reporting framework.

The FRP’s main product is a standardized guidance for companies and other organizations to report on the environmental and social performance of manufacturing and other facilities.

3

FRP Supports: Performance-focused regulatory and voluntary programs

including: Performance Track program State and federal environmental leadership programs Environmental management systems

Government agencies looking to advance best practice and sustainability leadership with corporate partners

Have partnered with EPA National Center for Environmental Innovation and state programs including WA Ecology, GA P2AD program, Colorado DPHE, Michigan DEQ

Facility awareness of external effects Global Reporting Initiative

4

Global Reporting Initiative

a multi-stakeholder process and independent institution

Sustainability Reporting Guidelines for voluntary reporting on the economic, environmental, and social dimensions of activities, products

1000+ companies reporting worldwide GRI “G3” guidelines recently released- refined indicators, reporting process and more tools, electronic report format

5

Why standardize reporting?

Companies receive diverse

information requests

Stakeholders receive

incomplete information

A generally-accepted reporting framework

developed through a multi-stakeholder process

Source: GRI

6

The CorporationMultiple information

requests from a range of stakeholders

Investors NGOs

Labor unions

Communities

Human rights

Toxics

Climate change

Governance

Labor policy

Health & safety

Air pollution

Economic impact

To the Facility

7

Why facilities produce sustainability reports

FRP can provide a format for a facility to communicate its comprehensive environmental impacts responsibly, credibly, and in understandable formats

FRP presents opportunity to create valuable dialogue, resulting in facilities: Putting better information into reports Identifying priority issues together with stakeholders

Having a mechanism to respond to stakeholder concerns Creating new strategies to engage communities and employees

Facilities commit to getting started and getting better over time

8

Value of FRP for stakeholders

For NGOs: Builds accountability between facilities and the communities they impact, and supports community right to know.

For Investors: Provides a basis for assessing local-level sustainability risks and performance within and between companies.

For Government authorities: Allows agencies to coordinate various programs, to evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives, and to drive more cohesion/efficiency among their efforts.

9

FRP pilot test participants La-Z-Boy Utah Timberland - Santiago, Dominican Republic Northside Foods- Cumming, GA National Renewable Energy Laboratory- Golden, CO Ford Motor Company - Dearborn, MI Louisiana Pacific- Wilmington, NC Qimonda- Richmond, VA New Hampshire Ball Bearings- Peterborough, NH Rockwell Collins- Dallas, TX Harwood Products- Branscomb, CA YSI, Inc.- Yellow Springs, OH Louisville & Jefferson County, KY Lockheed Martin- Mannassas, VA New York Organic Fertilizer Company- South Bronx, NY

10

The Reporting ProcessA Cycle of Continuous Improvement

Identify & Engage Stakeholders

Commit to reporting

Select Indicators

Draft ReportReview Draft w/Stakeholders

Solicit Stakeholder Feedback

Publish Report

11

FRP reporting curriculum Suggested sustainability indicators for reporting environmental, social and economic performance;

Guidance to assist in the reporting process;

Complementary tools to aid stakeholder engagement and identification of performance indicators

12

6 key parts of the FRP Reporting Guidance

Reporting principles How to prepare a report Facility overview Economic indicators Environmental indicators Social indicators

Contents of the Facility Report

13

Steps to create a facility report

Become familiar with FRP Guidance Match FRP metrics to already collected and reported data Identify and engage stakeholders (ongoing throughout) Draft facility profile Select key indicators to report Collect and add context to data Draft report and hold report review Report completionSolicit stakeholder feedback throughout!

14

FRP pilot test successes Improved level of dialogue, enhanced trust with key stakeholder groups

More efficient management of data collection systems

Format applicable for comprehensive sustainability reporting and footprint analysis“Collecting and analyzing information about

our effect on the environment, communities, and workers helps us gain a better understanding of our organization’s footprint. With this information, and stakeholder feedback, we can work to reduce that footprint and further integrate our facility into the community." 

- Dave Warren, General Manager, Timberland facility (Santiago)

15

FRP pilot test successes Opportunity to enhance environmental

performance commitments Increased employee understanding and

participation Stakeholders can ensure environmental data

collection and reporting creates real improvements

Target setting and public accountability helps drive tangible performance changes“By publishing our commitments and sharing it with a broader audience, [the report] ensures we put our money where our mouth is. If we tell our employees that we’re going to reduce energy by 10%, you can be sure they will hold us to it.”

- Calvin Overcash, Group Environmental Manager,

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation

16

FRP pilot test challenges Time necessary for comprehensive reporting Resources associated with producing a report

Reporting on multiple indicators consistently Normalization and trend data Targets and forward-looking goals Transparency of calculations

Satisfying multiple report audiences Willingness to engage stakeholders

17

The business case for FRP“Effectively managing the FRP indicators and working to reduce or increase the impacts of those indicators saved us money. That alone is a good driver for using the FRP as a business management tool.”-Patti Carrier, Environmental Manager, New Hampshire

Ball Bearings

“Our report presents information about how energy conservation efforts over the past two years have saved $600,000. Publicly reporting these benefits helps us show internally that these programs are paying for themselves and contributing to the bottom line.”

- Norm Davis, Facility Engineer, La-Z-Boy Utah

18

Thank you!For more information:

Contact Beth Ginsberg at Ceres617-247-0700 x21 or ginsberg@ceres.org

For more information about the FRP visit:

www.ceres.org/sustreporting/frp.php