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Sustainability at Chartered Accountants Ireland

Sustainability at Chartered Accountants Ireland

Chartered Accountants Ireland is working on embedding sustainability throughout our activities. Our Strategy24 reflects our ambition to build a more sustainable profession and institute in all aspects of our work. Our vision for the future is underpinned by five core ideals that support our central ethos of "for tomorrow, for good"

Our Advocacy and Voice Board is invested in driving the Institute’s agenda on sustainability. It mandated the establishment within Chartered Accountants Ireland of a Sustainability Expert Working Group, to inform the development of research for the accountancy profession in Ireland. This working group comprises representatives from accounting firms, government organisations and NGOs, academia, business, professional accounting organisations, and the energy, banking sector and technology sectors.

Institute representatives sit on the Sustainability Working Group of the Global Accounting Alliance, and through this we are a member of the Accounting Bodies Network of “Accounting for Sustainability” (A4S). A4S is Prince Charles’ Accounting for Sustainability Project and was established in 2004 with the aim of promoting sustainable decision-making in business. The Institute was one of 14 accounting bodies worldwide to become signatories to a call to action on climate change issued by A4S in February 2020.

In 2020 we launched our Sustainability Hub with information, guidance and supports to help members understand sustainability and meet the challenges it presents.

In November 2020, we launched a new guide, Sustainability for Accountants, detailing the risks and opportunities presented by sustainability, and the steps that need to be taken to address the challenges.

We respond to national and international consultations of relevance to sustainability, for example, the review of the EU’s Non-Financial Reporting Directive and the IFRS's consultation on the establishment of global sustainability reporting standards. In 2021 the Institute responded to the public consultation on the review of Ireland's Climate Action Plan 2019, which will set out actions that must be taken in order to ensure Ireland delivers on the commitments in the Programme for Government. These commitments include reaching our 2030 target of a 51 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, achieving climate neutrality by 2050, and making Ireland a leader in responding to climate change.

Through Chartered Accountants Worldwide the Institute is involved in a range of initiatives, including Finance & Business 2030 (FinBiz2030). The Irish Task Force is focussing on goals 4, 5, 10 and 13, and on raising awareness of all the UN SDGs.

We have integrated sustainability into the student curriculum, with the introduction of Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability and Integrated Reporting as a core area within Topic Area 4 Risk Management & Sustainability.

Sustainability is also included as a topic area in our Professional Development programme with members able to take integrated reporting at Diploma level in the new Excellence in Financial Reporting Diploma, starting in 2020.

Accountancy Ireland and Briefly regularly features sustainability-related content, including on its podcast series.

We run knolwedge and networking events, connecting experts with each other, and providing accountant-relevant information on the topic. Our largest event in 2021 will be a Sustainability Conference on June 16, at which the keynote speakers will be Eamon Ryan TD, Minister for Transport and Minister for the Environment, Climate & Communications in Ireland; and Nichola Mallon MLA, Minister for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland.

Through our District Society activities we run events on the topic of sustainability. Sustainability is also included as a topic area in our CPD programme, as part of the CPD Blitz business workstream.

Within the Institute itself, there is an established team-driven Environment and Social programme, where you can find details of our ESG initiatives, including information about our use of paper, plastic, water and electricity.

For more information about sustainability and climate action in Chartered Accountants Ireland, contact Public Policy Officer Susan Rossney.

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Our Institute’s journey to carbon neutrality

Chartered Accountants Ireland is committed to becoming the first carbon-neutral professional accountancy organisation in Ireland.

Our journey to carbon-neutrality began in December 2020 and will continue until we have balanced our carbon dioxide emissions with offsets or have removed them altogether. This journey is part of a project to improve how we use resources like water, paper and electricity and how we manage waste.