Sustainability Reporting (GRI)

Sustainability reporting, The Global Reporting Initiative, known as the Global Reporting Initiative, is a reporting solution that is translated into Turkish and abbreviated as GRI. GRI, which assumes a guiding role in the process of businesses and organizations combating climate change, human rights, corruption and other problems, continues its activities as an independent organization at the international level. GRI has a major role in companies' evaluation of their economic, social and environmental impacts and in measuring sustainability. With GRI, which supports the validity of the reports prepared by companies at the international level, you can also place your business's work in a more reasonable framework. What is a Sustainability Report? Sustainability Report, It is a concept developed to protect natural resources and the environment for future generations and to meet human needs. Essentially, sustainability is based on three main principles that include economic, social and environmental dimensions: environmental sustainability, economic sustainability and social sustainability.

1. Environmental Sustainability: Environmental sustainability aims to use and protect natural resources and ecosystems sustainably. This principle includes issues such as maintaining biodiversity, effectively managing water and energy resources, and reducing waste and pollution. Environmental sustainability also focuses on global environmental problems such as climate change.
2. Economic Sustainability: Economic sustainability aims to ensure that economic activities are sustainable for future generations. This principle includes economic growth, business activities and income distribution. Sustainable economy aims to ensure the profitability of businesses in a sustainable way while encouraging the efficient use of resources.
3. Social Sustainability: Social sustainability aims to improve the quality of life and well-being of people. This principle includes social factors such as education, health, social justice, human rights and gender equality. Social sustainability promotes a fair and equitable way of life that meets the needs of societies.

The concept of sustainability is a combination of these three principles and is a process that must be addressed in a balanced manner. Sustainability aims to meet the needs of today while also considering the needs of future generations. Therefore, it includes many different areas such as sustainable use of natural resources, waste reduction, transition to renewable energy sources, social justice and economic growth. The concept of sustainability aims to create a more sustainable world by bringing together environmental, economic and social dimensions. This concept is an important source of guidance for individuals, businesses and societies and contributes to building a healthier, fairer and more environmentally friendly world for the future. What is a Corporate Sustainability Report? Sustainability Report, It is a document created by a business to measure its sustainability performance and to explain this performance to its stakeholders. These reports assess the environmental, social and economic impacts of the business and show how these impacts are managed. Sustainability reports aim to clearly communicate the sustainability goals, progress and achievements of the business. Corporate sustainability refers to an approach that aims to manage the social, environmental and economic impacts of an organization in order to conduct its business activities in a sustainable manner. This approach requires organizations to be not only profit-oriented but also to consider their social and environmental responsibilities. Corporate sustainability emphasizes that organizations fulfill their social responsibilities. This includes issues such as respecting the rights of employees, promoting workplace diversity, contributing to local communities and protecting human rights. Social responsibility increases the reputation and social acceptance of organizations. Corporate sustainability encourages organizations to reduce their environmental impacts and use natural resources more sustainably. This includes practices such as energy efficiency projects, efforts to reduce carbon footprints, waste management strategies and the use of renewable energy. Environmental awareness helps organizations deal with major environmental problems such as climate change and natural resource depletion. Corporate sustainability enables organizations to target long-term economic success. This includes making financial decisions in line with sustainability principles, making long-term investments, and conducting business activities in a stable manner. Sustainability enables organizations to be prepared for future economic risks. Corporate sustainability encourages organizations to establish better relationships with their stakeholders. This includes practices such as transparent communication with customers, sustainable product sourcing with suppliers, sustainability reporting with investors, and collaborating with local communities. Good stakeholder relations help organizations support and strengthen sustainability. Corporate sustainability encourages organizations to develop long-term strategies. These strategies enable organizations to be prepared for future uncertainties and changing market conditions. Long-term strategies help organizations to put sustainability at their core and gain competitive advantage. In short, corporate sustainability is an approach that requires organizations to move beyond their profit-oriented approaches and take a broader perspective and manage their social and environmental impacts. This approach supports organizations' long-term success while also contributing to building a better future for society and the environment. Today, we are in a period where companies do not only focus on economic success but also fulfill their social and environmental responsibilities. In this context, the concept of “Sustainability Report” is gaining more and more importance. So, what is a sustainability report and why is it so important? A sustainability report is a document that examines an organization’s economic, environmental and social performance in detail and presents this information to its stakeholders. This report provides comprehensive information about the organization’s sustainability goals, the strategies it follows to achieve these goals, its practices and the results achieved. It also includes information about the organization’s sustainability-related risks, opportunities and future plans. A sustainability report helps organizations concretize their commitments to sustainability and increase their transparency towards their stakeholders. Content of the Sustainability Report The content of a sustainability report may vary depending on the industry the organization operates in, its size, its geographic location and many other factors. However, the basic content expected in a sustainability report is as follows:

• Introduction and Purpose: Information about the purpose, scope and target audience of the report.
• Management Message: A message about senior management's sustainability vision and commitments.
• Organization Profile: Basic information such as general information about the organization, the sector in which it operates, geographical location, and the number of employees.
• Sustainability Strategy and Commitments: The organization's long- and short-term sustainability-related goals, strategies and commitments.
• Economic Performance: Financial results, investments, economic value creation and other financial indicators.
• Environmental Performance: Energy consumption, water use, waste management, carbon emissions, use of natural resources and other environmental indicators.
• Social Performance: Labor rights, equality, community relations, supply chain management, corporate social responsibility projects and other social indicators.
• Supply Chain: Supplier selection, supplier evaluation, sustainable supply management and supplier relations.
• Risk Management: Potential risks to sustainability and measures taken to address these risks.
• Future Plans: The organization's future goals, plans and projects related to sustainability.
• Stakeholder Communication: How the organization communicates with its stakeholders, stakeholder expectations and feedback.
• Measurement and Evaluation: Methodologies, standards and external audit information used in preparing the report.

These contents form the general structure of the sustainability report. However, each organization can customize this content according to its own characteristics and needs. Why is a Sustainability Report Important? A sustainability report presents an organization’s social, environmental and economic performance in detail to its stakeholders. Here are some key points that highlight the importance of a sustainability report:

• Transparency: The report increases transparency by openly sharing the organization's sustainability-related activities, goals, and results.
• Stakeholder Trust: A sustainability report helps an organization gain the trust of customers, investors and other stakeholders by making its sustainability commitments tangible.
• Risk Management: The report helps the organization identify potential sustainability risks and develop strategies to counter these risks.
• Brand Value: A sustainability report provides a competitive advantage by increasing the brand value and reputation of the organization.
• Decision Making: The report enables the organization to make informed decisions regarding sustainability.
• Legal Compliance: In many countries, sustainability reporting is a legal requirement. The report ensures compliance with these legal requirements.
• Continuous Improvement: The report allows the organization to continuously evaluate and improve its sustainability performance.
• Social Responsibility: The report presents the organization's social responsibility commitments and the activities it has carried out in line with these commitments to its stakeholders.

Sustainability reporting allows organizations to concretize their commitment to sustainability, engage more transparently with their stakeholders, and contribute to a sustainable future. What is the Sustainability Report Preparation Process? While meticulous work is being done in the preparation processes regarding Sustainability Reports, every stage is tried to be handled carefully. In this context, what is important is to produce the report correctly and efficiently. Do you also want to evaluate the most reasonable alternatives in this regard? You can start the necessary studies regarding sustainability reporting by taking the following steps into consideration.

• Data Collection
• Evaluation of Data
• Gap Analysis
• Stakeholder Analysis
• Determination of GRI Question Sets
• Establishing the Sustainability Report Framework
• Creating the Sustainability Report Text
• English Translation of the Report
• Obtaining GRI Approval

While the GRI Reporting process is considered to be an important factor in achieving success, the aim is to determine the framework correctly and for the report to reveal success. You can place service processes in a more reasonable framework by getting support from us in terms of professional reporting and process monitoring. You should also remember that you can adopt a success-oriented approach by working in a very important area, especially GRI Reporting. Principles to be Considered in Sustainability Reporting Within the scope of GRI Reporting, it allows third parties to evaluate the environmental impacts originating from company activities and supply chain. In this context, the principles to be used during reporting in the context of the standard referred to as the GRI Indicator Protocol Set are also meticulously evaluated. When the most important elements are considered, performance indicators (PI), energy, biodiversity and emissions stand out as criteria that must be taken into consideration. The aim of GRI Sustainability Reporting is to convey the company's sustainability performance to its stakeholders using more comprehensive concepts. Sustainability performance, which provides solution-oriented results at both sectoral and global levels, is evaluated with limitations related to economic, environmental and social resources. What Does Sustainability Reporting Add to Companies? Sustainability Reporting ensures that private companies, public companies and voluntary sector organizations are positively affected in terms of both internal and external contributions. In this context, it should not be overlooked that the prepared reports provide the following benefits.

• Ensuring that missions and cherished values ​​are confirmed.
• Measure and make improvements related to economic, environmental and social governance performance.
• Aiming to support management sustainability and efficiency in an organizational sense.
• Taking the lead in determining goals and strategies by effectively managing change.
• Placing stakeholders' information within a systematic framework.
• Creating a platform that will positively impact the performance of customers and stakeholders.
• Focusing on work that will strengthen the reputation for accountability and transparency.

When all these evaluations are taken into consideration, Sustainability Reporting is an important issue that must be taken into consideration. While providing a reliable and sustainable reporting opportunity, it will also be possible to determine a successful approach in a strategic sense. What are GRI Reporting Standards? GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards The development processes of all businesses and governments in the world are now in a much higher quality framework with reports that enable approaches to ensure sustainability in climate change, human rights, governance and social welfare. Here are the standards taken into account within the scope of GRI Reporting!

• Sustainability Reporting Guidelines are accepted as a fundamental element in the reporting context. These refer to the definition of report content and the consideration of principles related to the quality of reported information. In the context of Standard Disclosures, guidance on specific topics in reporting is also included.
• There are indicator protocols related to the indicators included in the guide. The protocols in question support the reporting processes and include definitions, compilations and other information regarding the interpretation and consistency of performance indicators. Indicator Protocols are also provided to users within the scope of the guide.
• Sectoral annexes cover the interpretation and guidance processes on how the guidelines should be applied in certain sectors. Higher quality results are achieved thanks to sector-specific performance indicators.
• Technical protocols are being created to determine the limits in reporting. It is much easier to eliminate the problems encountered by most institutions with solutions structured through guides and sector annexes.

Solutions that encourage the use of common indicators within the scope of GRI Standards are emerging. In this way, comparability is achieved at a more successful point, while it is a solution that supports the success and flexibility of activities. While it is possible that organizations prefer improvement solutions for reports, it is also possible to address only a certain part of the content. It is desired that organizations specify how they use GRI Standards and key indicators. Sustainability Report Consultancy Sustainability Report consultancy, is a service that guides businesses on sustainability. These consultants help businesses reduce their environmental impact, fulfill their social responsibility and increase economic sustainability. Sustainability consultants help organizations set sustainability goals, develop strategies and monitor their performance. Sustainability report consultancyı helps businesses effectively create and manage their sustainability reports. These consultants determine what data businesses need to collect, optimize reporting processes, and ensure that sustainability reports comply with international standards. They also encourage transparency and reliability of sustainability reports.

• The future role of sustainability reporting consulting will be to help businesses further strengthen their sustainability efforts. As businesses become more aware of their environmental and social responsibilities, the role of sustainability reporting consultants will grow. They will help businesses raise awareness of sustainability issues, develop effective strategies, and contribute to a more sustainable future.
• Sustainability reporting consultancy is a critical service that helps businesses more effectively communicate and explain their sustainability efforts to their stakeholders. This service helps businesses demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and build a sustainable future.
• Sustainability will continue to maintain its importance as an indispensable value and area of ​​responsibility for businesses and societies, as a reflection of the commitment to leave a healthier world for future generations.

Why is Sustainability Report Consulting Necessary? Sustainability consulting helps businesses understand complex sustainability-related issues and produce effective solutions on these issues. Businesses apply for consulting services for many different goals, such as complying with sustainability-related legal regulations, reducing environmental impacts, and improving sustainability reporting. What are the Advantages of Sustainability Consulting? Sustainability consulting offers various advantages to businesses. These advantages include gaining competitive advantage, saving costs, strengthening reputation, improving stakeholder relations, and reducing risks. In addition, sustainability consultants help businesses demonstrate better sustainability performance. In Which Sectors Is Sustainability Consulting Used? Sustainability consulting is used in many different sectors. There is a great need for sustainability consulting, especially in the energy, food and agriculture, construction, automotive, finance, and technology sectors. However, sustainability has become an important factor in every sector, and almost all businesses focus on sustainability issues. The Future Role of Sustainability Consulting The future role of sustainability consulting will be to help businesses achieve more sustainability goals. With climate change, natural resource depletion, and social responsibility issues gaining importance, sustainability consultants will be in greater demand in the business world. These consultants will help organizations develop sustainability-compatible strategies and shape a more sustainable world of the future. Sustainability consulting is an important service that helps businesses achieve their sustainability goals more effectively. This service helps businesses fulfill their environmental, social, and economic responsibilities and build a more sustainable future. The Importance of Sustainability Reports Sustainability reports demonstrate the sustainability efforts of businesses to their stakeholders, while also increasing the reputation and competitive advantage of the business. These reports help investors and financial institutions evaluate sustainability performance, attract potential investors, and support the long-term sustainability of the business. Which Businesses Need Sustainability Report Consulting? Sustainability report consulting is important for businesses of all sizes. Especially large businesses need sustainability report consulting more because they are subject to international regulations and have more stakeholders. However, small businesses can also benefit from this service to clearly communicate their sustainability efforts and achieve their sustainability goals. You can reach us from the contact section for GRI Sustainability Reporting and consulting services.