EEAC Councils continue exchange on Sustainable Finance

Within the framework of the Athens Sustainability Outlook 2019, EEAC Member Councils continued their exchange on Sustainable Finance. Several councils gathered with experts from different European countries representing different stakeholder groups, -government, business, academia and opinion leaders in Athens on 4 and 5 April 2019. On behalf of the German Council for Sustainable Development (RNE) Yvonne Zwick gave a keynote (Speech text). In addition, also Nathalie Boucquey (Speech text) of the Federal Council for Sustainable Development Belgium (FRDO-CFDD) addressed the audience.

The conference included an important milestone, the announcement Turkey is about to become the third country with a national Sustainability Code.  The Turkish Sustainability Code, the result of a cooperation between the German Sustainability Code by RNE and the Turkish Center for Sustainable Production Research and Design (SÜRATAM), was announced at the Sustainability Outlook 2019 conference in Athens on 5th April 2019.

The partnership between the Code and SÜRATAM shows that the contents of the Code are cross-border relevant and applicable. A look at the widely varying standards of sustainability reporting and the growing interest in standardization underlines that an instrument such as the Code, which focuses on materiality, commitment and transparency, can offer a good and feasible option to internationally promote sustainable business practices.

Commenting on the announcement, Yvonne Zwick, Head of the Sustainability Code Office and Deputy Secretary General at the German Council for Sustainable Development noted: “The team in Turkey is laying the foundation to kick start the disclosure of sustainability efforts from companies of all sizes in Turkey. We are delighted to witness the announcement of the Turkish Sustainability Code and welcome them to the Code family.”

The Sustainability Outlook 2019 was organized by QualityNet Foundation, Greece  supported by the RNE.