Navigating digitalization in sustainability reporting
Published date: 17 December 2024
Article by Alper Cezmi Ozdemir, GRI Research Associate
Digital transformation, driven by technologies like data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI), is reshaping industries and sustainability reporting practices, creating both new opportunities and challenges.
That is why GRI has worked on a focussed paper, ‘The Impacts of Digitalization: Identifying emerging challenges and opportunities for sustainability reporting’, now available for free consultation and download. The paper examines the impacts of digitalization on sustainability reporting, covering related environmental issues, social challenges, and gaps in current reporting standards.
In his accompanying opinion piece on Medium, our Research Associate Alper Cezmi Ozdemir expands on the paper's key findings, discussing the practical implications for organizations:
Key takeaways of the paper are:
- Environmental impacts: data centers' energy consumption and e-waste highlight the urgent need for renewable energy sources and effective recycling initiatives.
- Social and human rights impacts: privacy concerns, algorithmic bias, and shifts in the labor market due to automation raise significant social and human rights challenges.
- Gaps in reporting standards: current reporting frameworks fall short in addressing emerging issues like AI, data governance, and cybersecurity.
With its proactive approach to standards development, GRI is well-positioned to lead the development of updated reporting standards, able to address the evolving challenges of digitalization in sustainability reporting, and including AI development, deployment, and cybersecurity concerns.
Digital transformation is fundamentally changing the way companies across industries and sectors operate. This transformation is fueled by a wide array of technological advancements, from data analytics to artificial intelligence (AI). While the growing use of digital technologies holds great promise, it also creates uncertainties around sustainability issues. It is now becoming increasingly important for organizations to grasp the implications that this shift has for how they approach sustainability reporting.
Alper Cezmi Özdemir, GRI Research Associate