Global issues like environmental and social problems are making it difficult for corporations to operate globally. The Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative (SSE) works to address these challenges by encouraging stock exchanges and their listed companies to improve sustainability performance and transparency. The SSE facilitates collaboration and knowledge sharing between exchanges and other stakeholders. It also conducts research on sustainability practices at exchanges around the world. Becoming involved in the SSE allows financial institutions to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and anticipate regulatory and market changes related to environmental, social, and governance issues.

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The S.S.E. and Sustainability
Global issues are prevalent among all countries and corporations are finding it harder to
operate globally, when certain environmental and societal issues are becoming more
problematic. A corporation in this day and age must be globally cognizant of these issues in
order to successfully conduct business in international markets. Companies all around the world
are adopting corporate sustainability practices as critical drivers for their global growth. Many
trading and investing institutions have adjusted their strategies to incorporate sustainable
practices in their investments. In 2009, collaboration between the United Nations and the Global
Compact Office resulted in the creation of the Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE).
“The SSE explores how stock exchanges can work together with investors, regulators and
companies to enhance corporate transparency – and ultimately performance – on environmental,
social and corporate governance (ESG) issues, and encourages responsible long-term approaches
to investment.” 1The SSE is an important tool that can be used to address and improve financial
sustainability on a global scale because of its concepts, research, and engagement activities. As
part of its core philosophy the SSE encourages financial institutions around the world to join its
program in order to promote better ESG communication and performance among traded
companies. The SSE focuses on a variety of concepts that are aimed at helping financial
exchanges become more sustainable.
The SSE invites global exchanges to become a partner stock exchange within the SSE by
making a public promise to enhance sustainability in their markets. The SSE encourages
participation from securities regulators, investors, companies and other key stakeholders. An
SSE consultative group is made up of exchanges and key officials that help to strategically guide

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members to further their sustainability goals. The SSE facilitates communication, organizes
global dialogues, and continues to innovate with regards to sustainable practices. When an
institution or person joins the SSE they are expected to “share information on current and future
sustainability activities, respond to strategic questions posed by the U.N. and partners; provide
feedback to the U.N. on the strategic direction of the SSE Initiative, as well as define and
participate in at least one work stream or event organized by the SSE.”2 By adhering to these
procedures, financial professionals are able to anticipate and profit off sustainable practices. By
listing companies that take ESG issues seriously, you are demonstrating to investors that you are
an active and goal oriented financial professional who is competent with regards to
sustainability; a skill that is very valuable in this day and age. Another important aspect of the
SSE that facilitates sustainability among financial professionals involves their extensive research
reports, which outline the implementation of sustainable practices according to location and
other variables.
In a research report titled “2014 Sustainable Stock Exchanges Report: A Report on
Progress. SSE Secretariat”, Sarah Bostwick, etc. asserts that over forty percent of 55 exchanges
reviewed offered at least one index integrating social and/or environmental issues. Over one-
third of the exchanges provided either sustainability reporting guidance or training to the listed
companies on their exchange. Twelve of the 55 exchanges required aspects of environmental and
social reporting for at least some of their companies, with 7 of those exchanges requiring such
reporting for all listed companies. The SSE is constantly conducting sustainability studies on
clusters of exchanges and different individual countries in order to develop further knowledge.
Each report contains a wealth of information that is easily accessible via the SSE website. In
addition to the research reports, the SSE also compiles fact sheets for stock exchanges around the

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world that identify sustainability practices as well as other relevant facts. Members of the SSE
also post their relevant data and research with regards to their own sustainability practices, so
that all members can learn from one another and collaborate further on ESG issues. The SSE is
constantly looking for input as to the activities and engagement events that should involve
members.
The SSE encourages regional dialogues and webinars among SSE Partner Exchanges
and/or the SSE Investor Working Group, with organizational support from the U.N. which
facilitates networking across the finance industry. The meetings help to showcase local
innovation and address ESG challenges from a variety of perspectives. Promotion of
‘sustainable’ products is encouraged among SSE members and prospective members. Research
on ESG risk management is a continuous activity that is universal among SSE members and can
lead to improved exchange performance. The SSE promotes integrated reporting among stock
exchanges to promote sustainability and corporate governance. This helps companies to
proactively report their activities and improves the regulation process for sustainability reporting.
SSE members are encouraged to explore ways to contribute directly to the development of
sustainability development goals.
The SSE investor working group helps to facilitate the development of activities that SSE
members can engage in to further each other’s sustainable practices. The SSE corporate working
group helps to represent exchanges and their individual companies, especially those that are
publicly listed and that are trying to further their corporate sustainability leadership. “The group
contributes advice, expertise, and knowledge to the SSE and represents an important stakeholder
within capital markets. Moderated by the United Nations Global Compact, this group meets a
strategic need in the SSE to convene all major capital markets and stakeholders in service of the

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same goal. In addition to companies, these stakeholders include stock exchanges, investors,
regulators, and policy makers.”3 The corporate working group helps to make sure that individual
exchange companies are involved in the process of furthering sustainability initiatives. The SSE
is an important organization that is focused on facilitating and assisting various financial
institutions and personnel to improve their sustainable practices in a manner that is collaborative
and beneficial to all involved.
“The Sustainable Stock Exchanges 2014 Report on Progress was launched at the 2014
Global Dialogue and contained a review of sustainability initiatives at 55 exchanges.”4 In this
report, the SSE has concluded that corporations are contributing towards sustainability goals in
the form of sustainable reporting, which focuses on reducing and recycling materials such as
paper and plastic and using electronic documents instead; and business efforts, which focus on
coordinating business activities such as manufacturing or waste removal with sustainable goals
such as using scrap metal from one subsidiary to produce components at another, but they could
be doing more to persuade political special interest groups to promote policy reform which
would break down regulatory obstacles that stand in the way of sustainability .
In the short term corporations lose profit in order to invest in long term sustainable
business projects/processes; money that might otherwise be given to shareholders in the form of
dividends is used to bolster the firm, its environmental efforts, its employees and the
communities surrounding the firm. These investments appeal to many shareholders that are
concerned with corporate sustainability initiatives and therefore the SSE does create value for
companies in the form of sharing initiative ideas among industry peers and facilitating business
practices that encourage sustainability. In consumer-oriented industries, many consumers
consider a firm’s sustainable efforts before purchasing their products. In business-to-business

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industries sustainable practices tend to pay for themselves and frequently turn a profit, given that
many process and product inefficiencies are improved upon.
As the finance industry expands into new markets it is imperative that they plan their
sustainable practices accordingly because our environment and our next generation will need and
want to live in a world that has been sustained. If we disregard these issues and pursue the
exploitation of resources for the sake of industrial profits, our children will have to live in a
world full of environmental and societal issues that will drain our global economy and the
stability of many businesses. It is beneficial to all corporations and the financial industry to take
advantage of the many tools and knowledge that the SSE provides. I can only hope that more
businesses and financial institutions take advantage of the great opportunities that the SSE
provides.

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Works Cited
1Power,G.(2014, May 6). The UN Global Compactand Financial Markets.RetrievedNovember19,2014,
fromhttps://www.unglobalcompact.org/issues/financial_markets/
2Concepts.(2013, January1). RetrievedNovember19,2014, from
http://www.sseinitiative.org/about/concepts/
Bostwick,S.,Chesebrough,D.,Feller,É,Kootnikoff,N.,Miller,A.,Rathee,S.,...Tart,S. (2014, October
14). 2014 Sustainable StockExchangesReport:A ReportonProgress.SSESecretariat.Retrieved
November19,2014, from http://www.sseinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SSE-2014-
ROP.pdf
3SSE Corporate WorkingGroup.(2013, January1). RetrievedNovember19,2014, from
http://www.sseinitiative.org/ssecorporate/
4 "Unctad.org | ReportFindsSubstantial ProgressonSustainabilityInitiativesat55 Stock Exchanges."
Web.1 Dec.2014. <http://unctad.org/en/pages/newsdetails.aspx?OriginalVersionID=849>.