Strengthening The ‘S’ In ESG Social Impact Assessment For Major Projects

• Presenter(s): Sara Bice, Ruth O'Connor, Emerson Sanchez

  Recorded: 16 February 2024

  • Slides

  ESG (environmental, social and governance) concerns are experiencing a renaissance, especially on the international stage. What does this renewed interest in ESG mean for major projects? For impact assessment practice? And how can social concerns be understood and prioritized to a degree equal to the 'E' and the 'G'? Join Past IAIA President (2020) Sara Bice in this special webinar as she explores how to strengthen the 'S' in ESG through impact assessment and major project management. We'll focus on leading practice in social risk management and social license to operate to explain the critical role of societal factors in major projects and the ways in which they can be better assessed and accommodated. Learn about 'ESG 2.0' and its connection to international initiatives and frameworks, including the UN SDGs, World Bank Environmental and Social Framework and OECD Blue Dot Initiative. Gain familiarity with emerging social risk management practices and improve your understanding of how common project procurement and contracting processes may limit attention to social considerations and what can be done about this. Drawing on over six years of research from the Australian National University Institute for Infrastructure in Society (I2S), participants will leave this webinar with an improved understanding of:

  • What ESG is and why it matters in the contemporary project environment
  • How 'ESG 2.0' is being defined and regulated
  • Why the 'S' in ESG is critical to sustainable futures
  • The ways in which the 'S' in ESG is assessed
  • Specific approaches and opportunities to improve attention to social concerns within major projects

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