ESG – It stands for Environment, Social and Governance and it occupies a lot of head space for senior corporate leaders as they try to balance economic imperatives with their roles in the community.
But this week we’re seeing a distinct divergence in the way the Western world sees this acronym and the stress on the Canadian fabric is becoming increasingly evident.
The Prime Minister’s announcement in Scotland that Canada would immediately place a cap on emissions from the fossil fuel industry was the second wedge. The first was his decisions to skip National Reconciliation Day.
Here’s the difference between Europe and Western Canada. For Europeans, ESG is all about the E – environment and climate change. For Saskatchewan – an energy producer – the S or social – is top of the list as we try to bridge the economic gap between the mainstream economy and our First Nations communities. Because Europe doesn’t have indigenous communities – they were the colonialists – that part of ESG is not on their radar.
Now, on that side of the Atlantic Ocean, our prime minister announced he has sided with Europe on these important issues.
