Frankly Speaking - A Podcast on Responsible Business

** Note to the listeners: due to technical difficulties, we recommend listening to this episode on Spotify while the audio is being updated on all platforms. Thank you for your patience and for bearing with us while we fix this technical issue. This week in the podcast, Richard Howitt welcomes one of the leading business voices on supply chain management in the world, Linda Kromjong, president of amfori, Global Business Association and a key advocate of open and sustainable trade in Europe and in the world. Together they discuss: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

This week in Frankly Speaking, we put the spotlight on a new report produced by the OECD and analysing the state of corporate sustainability reporting in the world. To discuss it, we welcome Caio de Oliveira, policy analyst at the OECD, who's had major responsibility in producing the report and who leads the sustainability work streams at the OECD on behalf of the Corporate Governance Committee and the Financial Markets Committee at the organisation. Caio has previously worked for the Brazilian government's Economic Ministry and for the country's Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM). Richard and Caio address: The findings of the OECD’s Global Corporate Sustainability 2024 report How much and to what degree is sustainability reporting going on by companies The high levels of reporting of scope 1 and scope 2 GHG emissions compared to low levels of scope 3 indirect emissions reporting Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

Many of us know that dependence of developing countries on raw commodities leaves them vulnerable to price volatility and sees profit made in countries where the commodity is imported and then processed, rather than where it is produced. It's often farmers in those developing countries who are at the end of the line. That problem has been specifically highlighted in the cocoa sector this year. Today in the podcast we look at where cocoa prices have gone parabolic, rising from just over 2,000 USD a tonne in 2022 to over $10,000 a tonne in 2024. It’s seen not just companies and farmers in producer companies suffer, but major chocolate companies in the global North, which have seen costs multiply and their share prices plummet by up to a third. To discuss what's happening here, our guest is Antonie Fountain, managing director of the Voice Network, watchdog and catalyst for a reformed cocoa sector. Antonie is also the co-author of the Cocoa Barometer, the biennial review of sustainability in Cocoa. Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

In this new Frankly Speaking episode, we explore the question of human rights due diligence by companies by asking what should go in the contract. Due diligence approaches have been criticized as simply using contractual clauses to pass off risk and responsibility down the supply chain. To address how this can be avoided and to discuss what should and shouldn’t be in the contract, Richard Howitt welcomes Professor Sarah Dadush, writer and teacher in business and human rights at Rutgers Law School in the United States. She is the founding director of the Responsible Contracting Project, the mission of which is to improve human rights in global supply chains through innovative contracting practices. Check out Responsible Contracting Project's website to access all their tools. Together, they discuss the concept of "shared responsibility" and: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

In this Frankly Speaking episode, we explore how companies should undertake a materiality assessment when they tackle their sustainability report. The concept of materiality is derived from financial accounting in business and human rights, and very simply asks the question: does this information matter? To guide us, we welcome back ⁠Filip Gregor⁠, head of ⁠Frank Bold’s Responsible Companies section⁠ and member of EFRAG’s Sustainability Reporting Board, which draws up and recommends the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). Richard and Filip discuss: How materiality is done in the ESRS and what does double materiality mean How companies should start to think about assessing and measuring impact materiality The logic behind the "traffic light" system for risk assessment in ⁠EFRAG's draft guidance on Materiality Assessment⁠ Filip’s advice to companies that want to better understand financial materiality What is the role of the stakeholder in relation to the materiality question Listen in and follow us on ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠! ***Participate in our ⁠anonymous survey⁠: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

In this episode, Frankly Speaking explores the new climate disclosure rules just agreed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States and asks what are the implications both in the US and worldwide. To answer those questions, Richard Howitt welcomes Tracey Rembert, Associate Director, Climate Change and Environmental Justice at the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), and Alexandra Wright-Gladstein, founder and CEO of the climate-friendly investment fund Sphere. Together they discuss: If the SEC’s rules are a major advance in business sustainability or too big compromise What are the positives of the new rules and potential challenges ahead Whether companies are going to get on and start preparing to do this now? If the ESG backlash is going to carry on unabated or does this decision change it in some way Their advice to investors and companies to start preparing for these new rules Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

In this new Frankly Speaking episode, Richard Howitt and his guests ask what is really happening in Europe's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), the proposed law on how companies identify, prevent and remedy human rights and environmental abuses in their global supply chains. Given political agreement by EU governments and members of the European Parliament before Christmas 2023, some governments undertook a volte face and indicated they would not support the law at the final administrative stage, when it would normally be nodded through without even discussion. To guide us on why this is happening and what will happen now, Richard is joined by Andreas Rasche, professor of Business in Society at Copenhagen Business School and author of the book Corporate Sustainability, and Julia Otten, Senior Policy Officer at Frank Bold and lead on the Responsible Companies’ work on Corporate Due Diligence. Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

Today, Frankly Speaking welcomes Veronica Poole, Global International Financial Reporting Standards and Corporate Reporting Leader at big four accountancy company Deloitte. In that role, Veronica has been at the forefront of moves to set sustainability reporting standards for business to the creation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). She is both one of the leaders in the world with knowledge about the ISSB but also with responsibilities to help companies implement its recommendations. In this episode you’ll hear Veronica’s views on: Her historic role in the formation of the ISSB The importance of enterprise value creation The connection between broader sustainability issues and the material financial impact on the company What is significant about new IFRS standards and which priorities should come next for the ISSB Evolution of the assurance sector and if it’s ready for mandatory sustainability reporting Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

On the podcast this week, we are joined by Belinda Christine Borck, Global Public Policy Coordinator at the Dutch-based chocolate producer Tony's Chocolonely. Tony’s mission is to make 100% slave free the norm in all chocolate worldwide, and founder Teun van de Keuken picks the name “Chocolonely” to encapsulate his “lonely fight against inequality in the chocolate industry”. The company has changed the standard square piece format of the chocolate bar to an unequally divided piece to symbolize the unequally divided cocoa supply chain. In this episode, Richard and Belinda discuss: How chocolate companies can combat systemic poverty by ensuring that farmers and producers in their supply chain receive a living income The importance of traceability as a base for companies to take responsibility for their potential negative impacts The role of legislations such as the EU Deforestation Regulation, the EU Forced Labour Regulation or the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive to enhance corporate transparency and address human rights and environmental violations Tony’s Open Chain: how collaborating on cocoa does not impede competition on chocolate … and more! Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

On the podcast this week, we are joined by Belinda Christine Borck, Global Public Policy Coordinator at the Dutch-based chocolate producer Tony's Chocolonely. Tony’s mission is to make 100% slave free the norm in all chocolate worldwide, and founder Teun van de Keuken picks the name “Chocolonely” to encapsulate his “lonely fight against inequality in the chocolate industry”. The company has changed the standard square piece format of the chocolate bar to an unequally divided piece to symbolize the unequally divided cocoa supply chain. In this episode, Richard and Belinda discuss: How chocolate companies can combat systemic poverty by ensuring that farmers and producers in their supply chain receive a living income The importance of traceability as a base for companies to take responsibility for their potential negative impacts The role of legislations such as the EU Deforestation Regulation, the EU Forced Labour Regulation or the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive to enhance corporate transparency and address human rights and environmental violations Tony’s Open Chain: how collaborating on cocoa does not impede competition on chocolate … and more! Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

"We don't just need to change companies, but to change the system." How often have we heard this statement? In this Frankly Speaking episode, Richard Howitt is joined by Dr. Anneloes Smitsman. They address what systems change means and how companies can contribute to achieving it. We also discuss if there is a social tipping point where people's acceptance of the need to act on climate change will make a decisive difference in how consumers, employees and investors support the necessary changes in companies. Dr. Anneloes Smitsman has a PhD in systems science, a pioneer in human development and in systems change, futurist, and entrepreneur. Annaloes is also the founder and CEO of EARTHwise Centre. Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

Happy New Year to all Frankly Speaking listeners! Today’s guest is Nele Meyer, appointed last year as director of the European Coalition for Corporate Justice, a European network of NGOs which undertake advocacy on issues of corporate accountability. In this first episode of 2024, Richard and Nele look back on a key achievement of the past year: the new EU rules on mandatory due diligence, given political agreement late in December. In the second part of the episode, they look forward to what will be important in corporate sustainability, business and human rights in 2024. Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

For the last Frankly Speaking episode of 2023, Richard Howitt welcomes Maria Mendiluce, CEO of the We Mean Business Coalition and named last month by Time Magazine as one of the world’s top 100 Climate leaders. Their mission brings together a group of nonprofit organizations collaborating to accelerate an inclusive transition to a net zero economy. With their ‘Fossil to Clean’ campaign, they called all Parties at COP28 "to transform the global energy system towards a full phase-out of unabated fossil fuels and halve emissions this decade." Although the outcome of this year’s COP was not what was hoped for, “for the first time we have a global agreement to transition away from all fossil fuels in line with science.” But what does this mean for business? In this conversation you’ll hear more about: Enjoy your listen in, subscribe and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠. We wish you a good holiday season and best wishes for 2024, will be back on the 10th of January with a brand new episode! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

How can companies and investors be agents of change for human and social rights? Today on Frankly Speaking is Caroline Rees, President and co-Founder of Shift, the leading center of expertise on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and #HumanRights. After a tribute to Professor John Ruggie’s work (author of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights), you’ll hear Richard and Caroline discuss: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

In what ways does business interact with nature? What can businesses do about the biodiversity crisis, the loss of wildlife populations or species facing extinction? In September, the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) came up with at least some of the answers, with its recommendations providing the tools and methodologies needed by companies and investors to develop a sustainable relationship with nature. To discuss it on the podcast this week, Richard Howitt receives TNFD’s Executive Director and Technical Director, Tony Goldner and Emily McKenzie. You’ll hear more about: - How can nature present a risk to business - Where do the TNFD Recommendations fit with the rest of reporting frameworks such as the ESRS or the ISSB Standards. - The relationship between TNFD and TCFD - The guidance available to businesses to implement the recommendations, including the LEAP approach Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠! ***Participate in our anonymous survey: Help us understand what you enjoy in the show, what you want us to do better, and who you want to listen to next! https://forms.gle/xCkhhWrwf6qCiyJHA

We often hear discussions about corporate accountability being too dominated by developed countries and that we need to hear more voices from the Global South. What does the global value chain look like from the other end? How do concepts in international documents like the UN Guiding Principles apply on the ground? Is it really possible for victims to get a fair hearing? To answer these questions this week, Richard Howitt receives Maxwell Atuhura, a farmer and fisherman from Uganda, who for the past six years has been relentlessly defending the rights of people affected by the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) linking Uganda with Tanzania. They are joined by Nicholas Omonuk, student and part of End Fossil Occupy Uganda, Rise Up Movement and Fridays For Future MAPA. You’ll hear more about: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠!

Since 2018, Europe has been a leader in sustainable finance efforts, establishing its taxonomy on what can be classified as a sustainable investment and requiring investors to disclose how far their investments are sustainable. More recently, the European Commission opened a consultation on the entire future of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (#SFDR). To discuss these crucial issues in the podcast today with Richard Howitt: Marie Baumgarts, sustainability partner at KPMG and member of the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance. In this conversation, we cover: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠!

Join us for a thought-provoking episode as we delve into the world of critical raw materials. We've all heard about the global dilemmas surrounding resources like cobalt, essential for the technology in our mobile phones, but often sourced from regions with questionable human rights records. The energy transition, the production of batteries, electric vehicles, and the transmission of renewable energy all rely heavily on raw materials, including cobalt, nickel, lithium, and rare earth elements. These minerals are concentrated in a few countries, making them susceptible to geopolitical supply disruptions. International institutions, including the United States and the European Union, have been working on critical minerals strategies, with Europe's proposed Critical Raw Materials Act currently at a pivotal stage. In this episode, host Richard Howitt engages in a captivating conversation with ⁠Michael Reckordt⁠, Resource Policy expert from the German organization ⁠Powershift⁠. PowerShift conducts research and develops policies related to international trade, raw materials, and climate policy, all in support of a more ecological and fair global economy. You’ll hear more about: Listen in and follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠!

The Grantham Institute - Climate Change and the Environment database now records more than 2000 cases of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, a tripling of the number since just 2019. To discuss the rising tide of such legal cases and what's behind them, we welcome Sandra Cossart, Executive Director of Sherpa and strategic litigation expert. Some of Sherpa’s cases include current action seeking to get TotalEnergies to comply with the Paris Climate Agreement, a case seeking judicial investigation against fashion companies for alleged concealment of human trafficking and crimes against humanity in their supply chains and the prosecution of construction company Lafarge for crimes against humanity in Syria. Find out more about: Listen in and follow us on LinkedIn and ⁠Twitter⁠!

To celebrate the first anniversary of the podcast, Richard Howitt welcomes back three of our special guests to bring you up to date on some of those issues and also to look forward to what's going to happen next: Rachel Davis, vice-president and co-founder of Shift, Lene Serpa, director and head of corporate sustainability at A.P. Moller-Maersk, and Filip Gregor, head of Frank Bold’s Responsible Companies Section. In this episode, you’ll hear more of the debate between our guests: 02:44 Latest state of progress Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) 06:00 Do the debates on the CS3D and CSRD get lost in the details? 08:44 What is “risk” all about in the corporate sustainability field? 16:54 What's new in terms of technology and the R&D in the transport sector? 22:11 Companies’ technological journey and sustainability reporting 26:33 Is the debate around ESG shifting? What is the state of play in the US? 30:53 Geopolitical situation with China and impact on business and human rights 37:10 Looking ahead: insights in current priorities for corporate sustainability 43:13 Rachel D. on the upsides of sports and human rights (Women's World Cup) 45:26 Filip G. positive's perspective on addressing global crises related to climate change, biodiversity, and human rights abuses 48:30 Lene S. on the need to contribute to a better world for the next generations Listen in and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn!