On the afternoon of April 3, 2023, the first meeting of multiple ESG standards of the Shanghai Federation of Industrial Economics  was successfully held in the building of the Shanghai Federation of Industrial Economics. Guan Weiyong, President of Shanghai Federation of Industrial Economics, and Jiang Weisong, Deputy Secretary-General, came to give some guidance 

Part of the experts involved in the drafing of the standard are:

Xiong Chenyao, Director of Shanghai Enterprise Compliance Research Center

Qu Weifeng, General Manager of Shanghai Leverage Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd.

Shi Zaifeng, Vice President of Green Technology Bank (Shanghai) Technology Development Co., Ltd.

Dr. Jianzhong Lv, Director of the Global Reporting Initiative 

Lu Zhian, Executive Deputy Director of the National Human Rights Education and Training Base of Fudan University

Ni Shoubin, Professor of Shanghai International Intellectual Property Institute, Tongji University 

Gao Qiqi, Dean of the Institute of Political Science, East China University of Political Science and Law

Liu Chunlei, Director of Shanghai Minhang District Qingyue Environmental Information Technology Service Center

Sun Xiaowen, Director of China Corporate Social Responsibility Research Center at Southern Weekend

Zhao Jiangzhen, Shanghai Wanhao Law Firm

Lin Zhiwen, deputy director of Shanghai Hutai Law Firm

Shou Chao, Shanghai Zhongtian Law Firm, etc.

This meeting had discussed The Guidelines for the Preparation of Corporate ESG Environmental, Social and Governance Reports, Corporate ESG Communicate and report on the drafting of ESG related standards such as Evaluation Guidelines for Environmental, Social and Governance Reports, Guidelines for the preparation of Enterprise Carbon Neutral Roadmap Action Reports, Evaluation Guidelines for Enterprise Carbon Neutral Roadmap Action Reports", and Jianghai Plastic Recycling Certification Standards. First, General Manager Qu Weifeng of Leverage introduced the drafting background of the five standards, the progress of standard preparation, members of the expert group, working ideas and strategic direction to the participating expert group. Director Xiong Chenyao pointed out that ESG is the future development trend, the manifestation of the social responsibility of various market entities, and the only way for the development of enterprises. The establishment of ESG standards and the construction of evaluation system are imperative.

Guan Weiyong, director of the Shanghai Federation of Industrial Economics, strongly supported the development of the standards conference, he said: the Federation of Industrial Economics is the most authoritative industrial organization in Shanghai, and has been committed to promoting the implementation of corporate social responsibility, laying a certain foundation for the implementation of ESG strategy. The formulation and release of ESG standards not only help enterprises to better practice social responsibility, but also win the respect of the country, society and industry. Our ESG standards should reflect Chinese characteristics, proceed from the actual situation of the country and enterprises, and selectively adopt different opinions in order to conform to the characteristics and development of Chinese enterprises，at the same time, it is necessary to achieve "popular expression of professional content, international expression of Chinese stories". The influence, leadership, coverage, evaluability and feasibility of the standard needed to be considered in the process of standard development.

During the meeting, experts from various fields put forward valuable opinions and suggestions for the development of ESG standards:

Director Liu Chunlei analyzed the characteristics and differences of the two international ESG standards, GRI and ISSB, emphasized the influence of internal and external factors on sustainable development of enterprises, and indicated that the formulation of ESG standards needs to be combined with my country's national conditions and enterprise conditions. Professor Lu Zhian pointed out that our standards need to be more flexible. We should jump out of the limitation of ESG thinking, be oriented by the concept of sustainable development, take into account international standards and domestic realities, and include a wider range of content. Dr. Lu Jianzhong pointed out that sustainable development is the integration of financial performance and non-financial performance of enterprises, and our ESG standards should be both advanced and boundary, and the principles of consistency, balance and coverage should be followed in the process of standard formulation.

At the same time, Lin Zhiwen and Shou Chao from the law industry shared their views from the perspective of legal practice and compliance. Lawyer Shou put forward in combination with daily legal practice: what we need to do is to give small and medium-sized enterprises to have the motivation to implement sustainable development, we can formulate ESG disclosure indicators and methods suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises through the classification of indicators. Director Guan said that the standard can include a basic version and a full version (upgraded version) to suit different types of enterprises. Lawyer Lin expressed his views on the practical direction of ESG companies: standards should be based on the law, but higher than the law. When formulating standards, it is necessary to consider the aspects of "people, things, products or services" of the enterprise, so as to make enterprises realize the importance of sustainable development, thereby enhancing their enthusiasm and initiative to participate in the implementation of standards. 

Director Guan finally said that it is necessary to promote more companies to disclose ESG, expand the target audience, and take measures to reduce the participation cost of small and medium-sized enterprises, and give incentives through commendation and other methods; it is also necessary to integrate concepts such as green finance and carbon assets to help Enterprises achieve sustainable business operations.