SustainabilityHQ.com Weekly Highlights April 5, 2012

Disturbing Survey on Business Ethics
(Wednesday - April 04, 2012)
Source: Sustainable Business Forum - The Ethics Resource Center recently published their bi-annual business ethics survey, looking at the American business environment. While I would not say the changes in results are remarkably different from their prior survey...

Sustainability & Corporate Responsibility Reporting
G&A Institute is the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) sole data partner for the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. As the data partner we monitor, analyze and database information on all Sustainability reports issued in these territories. Recent Sustainability and CR Reports issued in the USA, UK and Ireland are:

USA

• American Chemical Society Documents Key Advances Toward Sustainable National Meetings: First Report of Its Kind From Any Organization
  (Tuesday - April 03, 2012) Source: American Chemical Society

• Consol Energy Release Corporate Responsibility Report(Tuesday - April 03, 2012) Source: Consol Energy

• Johns Manville Publishes 2011 Sustainability Report (Tuesday - April 03, 2012) Source: MarketWatch

UK

• BAE Systems plc (LON:BA) publishes 2011 Annual Report (Saturday - March 31, 2012) Source: BAE Systems

• SEGRO publishes its 2011 Sustainability Report
  (Friday - March 30, 2012) Source:  MarketWatch

ESG / Sustainability

UN: 2.4 Million Human Trafficking Victims
(Wednesday - April 04, 2012) Associated Profiles : Verité
Source: AP- The U.N. crime-fighting office said Tuesday that 2.4 million people across the globe are victims of human trafficking at any one time, and 80 percent of them are being exploited as sexual slaves.

Coastal Areas Biggest Losers in Global Warming
(Wednesday - April 04, 2012) Associated Profiles : Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change(IPCC)
Source: The Daily Gamecock - Locations most popular in U.S prone to worst natural disaster damages. Global warming is officially upon us. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has accepted it, and released a 582-page report last ...

Muddy Waters: Be Wary of Hong Kong Listed Chinese Companies
(Tuesday - April 03, 2012) Associated Profiles : CII
Source: CNN Money - For the past two years, Muddy Waters has been the ultimate whistle blower of questionable accounting practices by Chinese companies trading on U.S. and Canadian stock exchanges. Now, the research firm says investors need to...

China Complains About Apple's Human Rights
(Thursday - March 29, 2012) Associated Profiles : Fair Labor Association
Source: AFP - The man tipped to be China's next leader has told Apple that foreign firms should protect workers, state media said Thursday, as the US giant fends off criticism over factory conditions in China.

Reports

Gallup: Americans Worried More About Economy Than Environment
(Friday - March 30, 2012)
Source: The Hill - Americans continue to be more concerned with economic growth than the environment, according to a new Gallup survey. With the economy seemingly on the upswing, Gallup reported that 49 percent of Americans sided with the economy...

Commentary

That Sound You Hear Is the Euro Cracking
(Wednesday - April 04, 2012)
Source: Time - A breakup in the euro zone just got more real with the announcement of the short list for the Wolfson Economics Prize, a prestigious economics award that has the biggest payout (£250,000, or about $400,000) after the Nobel Prize....

Sovereign Wealth Funds

Rules Loosen for Old Clients on Yuan Deals
(Tuesday - April 03, 2012) Associated Profiles : Hong Kong (China) Monetary Authority -- Investment Portfolio
Source: The Standard - The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has eased due diligence requirements for cross-border yuan trade "back to international levels" following requests by the financial services sector.

As Norway Funds Rainforest Conservation, Its Pension Fund Invests in Companies Driving Deforestation
(Friday - March 30, 2012) Associated Profiles : Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global (Statens pensjonsfond – Utland) , Norwegian Government Pension Fund - Norway
Source: Monga Bay- At the same time that it is committing hundreds of millions of dollars a year to protecting rainforests, Norway is investing more than 13 billion dollars a year via its pension fund in dozens of companies linked to deforestation...

Carbon Tax 'Worst Piece of Reform'
(Friday - March 30, 2012) Associated Profiles : Future Fund (Australia)
Source: Daily Telegraph- THE carbon tax is the "worst piece of economic reform'' ever seen in Australia, according to the outgoing chairman of the Future Fund.

Gaddafi Family Assets Seized in Italy
(Thursday - March 29, 2012) Associated Profiles : Libyan Investment Authority
Source: Guardian.co.uk- Assets worth more than €1-billion belonging to the late Muammar Gaddafi, his son and his intelligence chief have been seized in Italy in raids.

his is just a sample of some of the articles from this weeks SustainabilityHQ Highlights.  You can view the full Highlights by using the following links.  Sustainability | ESG, Highlights for the Week of April 5, 2012