“Carrots and Sticks for Starters,” a joint report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and KPMG’s Global Sustainability Services, gives an overview and analysis of current trends and approaches in mandatory and voluntary standards for sustainability reporting and corporate responsibility.

Presented at an international conference to launch the new G3 version of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines on sustainability reporting, the report argues that balanced regulation should highlight the importance of a publicly recognised set of performance indicators, of which the GRI provides a global reference framework.

It also stresses the need for independent verification, stakeholder engagement, and the role of government in enforcing a level playing field and introducing incentives such as relieving reporting companies from obligations to report separately to individual government departments.