Page 74 - The Corporate Report Pack

How can corporate narrative reporting prevent extinction?
Jill Atkins
Business, as a direct cause of habitat loss and an indirect cause of climate change, has a responsibility to slow and, ultimately, prevent the ongoing extinction crisis.
Extinction of ora, fauna and all living species on earth and accounting: surely they have little to connect them? Wrong. Accounting and especially narrative reporting could potentially prevent the extinction of hundreds, if not thousands, of species around the world.
As many are aware, our world is currently experiencing a sixth period of mass species extinction. Current extinction rates are estimated somewhere between a thousand and ten thousand times higher than the ‘natural’ level of extinction. Causes include industrial
Since the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, pollution has had deleterious e ects on air, water and land, contaminating natural habitats and a ecting wildlife. Furthermore, climate change is a ecting migrations, breeding patterns as well as destroying natural communities such as sea life and coral reefs.
South Africa’s wildlife is deeply a ected by the current extinction crisis. Looking at one species, the African Elephant Status Report was launched on 23 September this year in Johannesburg.1 Clearly, the main culprit is ivory poaching, although climate change (especially
An integrated approach to corporate thinking and reporting should incorporate extinction as a crucial element of value creation and risk management.
activity, increasing human population, global warming, climate change, habitat loss, pollution, use of pesticides, mono-agriculture, as well as criminal activities a ecting wildlife, such as poaching. Indeed, the roots of extinction are found primarily in corporate activity. Multinational businesses in high environmental impact sectors, such as extractives, energy, chemicals, tourism and agriculture, have been changing the natural landscape for decades, even centuries, resulting in the loss of habitats and the collapse of biodiversity and local ecosystems.
drought) and habitat loss are contributing signi cantly. e report states that since 2007, southern Africa, which holds the largest populations of elephants in Africa, has lost around 30,000 elephants. Rhinoceros are also in decline for similar reasons, with over a thousand a year being lost from the Kruger Park since 2013.
Business, as a direct cause of habitat loss and an indirect cause of climate change, has a responsibility to slow and, ultimately, prevent the ongoing extinction crisis. As well as an ethical and moral obligation,
1 See CR ouless, HT Dublin, JJ Blanc, DP Skinner, TE Daniel, RD Taylor, F Maisels, HL Frederick, & P Bouché ‘African Elephant Status Report 2016: An Update from the African Elephant Database’ (2016), Occasional Paper of the IUCN Species Survival Commission No. 60, IUCN/SSC Africa Elephant Specialist Group, IUCN Gland Switzerland.
42 The Corporate Report
How can corporate narrative reporting prevent extinction?