Sustainability is defined as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future (The Brundtland Commission), United Nations 1987.
To help achieve our goal of integrating sustainability across the business, bankmecu has committed to three public programs requiring transparency and accountability regarding economic, environmental and social performance. Committing to international public programs shows the strength of our commitment to sustainability and to being a leader in financial services. The bankmecu Annual Report is the key reporting mechanism for reporting against external commitments.
United Nations Environment Program Financial Initiative (UNEP FI)
bankmecu (formerly mecu) was the first credit union in the world to become a signatory to the United Nations Environment Program Financial Initiative Statement by Financial Institutions on the Environment and Sustainable Development. This commits bankmecu to embedding a sustainable approach into its operations.
By signing the statement bankmecu recognises that sustainability is important, that it is the collective responsibility of government, business and individuals and that bankmecu will work with others to achieve common environmental goals.
As a signatory, bankmecu must uphold the principles of UNEP FI and also undertake specific actions including reporting environmental performance and sharing information with bankmecu customers, staff, governments and the public.
United Nations Global Compact (UN GC)
In April 2010, bankmecu became a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact (UN GC). The UN GC is currently the largest corporate citizenship and sustainability initiative in the world, with over 5500 corporate participants and stakeholders from over 130 countries.
The UN Global Compact is a strategic policy initiative for bankmecu to align operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles addressing human rights, labour standards, environment, and anti-corruption.
To view bankmecu's first Communication on Progress against the UN Global Compact submitted in April 2011, click here. Our second UN Global Compact Communication on Progress can be viewed here.
United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI)
In May 2010, bankmecu also became a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI). UN PRI identifies and aims to address environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) issues that affect the performance of investments. The Principles complement the UN Global Compact and are a natural extension of the work of UNEP FI, which has helped elevate the importance of environmental and social issues in financial markets.
Annual Reporting
Having a genuine and meaningful approach to sustainability requires accountability and transparency. An organisation must open itself to independent external review and advice so that it has an objective assessment of its activities.
bankmecu uses a program called the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 2006 Guidelines to prepare its Annual Report. The GRI provides a framework for appropriate measurement and reporting across a range of factors and bankmecu uses its stakeholder engagement program and the external commitments to decide which factors are most relevant and therefore need to be reported.
bankmecu’s 2010/11 Annual Report has been verified by a third party using the AA1000 Assurance Standard and had been awarded a GRI A+ Application Level. The “Statutory Financial Report” section meets the requirements of the Corporations Act 2001 Australian Accounting Standards and has received an unqualified auditors report.
bankmecu has a history of excellence in reporting and has been awarded regularly since sustainability reporting began:
- winner of the 61st Australasian Reporting Award – Special Category: Sustainability 2011.
- short-listing for an Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Sustainability Report Award 2011.
- finalist of the 60th Australasian Reporting Award – Special Category: Sustainability 2010.
- winner of the 59th Australasian Reporting Award in the Special Category: Sustainability 2009.
- joint winner of the ACCA Continued High Quality Sustainability Reporting Award 2007.
- ranked among the top 50 leading sustainability reporters in the world by Global Reporters 2006.
- short-listed for an Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Sustainability Report Award 2009.
- winner of the ACCA Best Sustainability Report 2005.
Integrated Reporting Project
In 2011, bankmecu chose to participate in the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) Integrated Reporting Project. bankmecu has shown itself to be one of the world’s leading mutual financial institutions in sustainability performance and reporting, having produced its seventh annual Sustainability Report for the 2010/11 financial year. Being an early mover towards integrated reporting will maintain bankmecu’s leadership position and innovative edge.
It is believed participating in the IR project will produce the following benefits:
- Improve alignment of bankmecu’s performance reporting against its strategic aims:
Traditional reporting is driven by external standards and compliance obligations which do not necessarily align with bankmecu’s strategic aims. Integrated reporting will derive more clearly from strategic direction and report performance against that. It will still comply and meet appropriate standards.
Separate sustainability and financial reporting has seen the former subordinated to the latter when the truly informative comprehensive report of bankmecu’s performance has been contained in its sustainability reporting. Integrated reporting should overcome this.
- Better demonstrate bankmecu’s value creation and benefit delivery as a customer-owned bank:
As a customer-owned bank, one of bankmecu’s challenges is to demonstrate how it delivers benefit to its customer-owners.
Producing an integrated report will demonstrate better the link between financial and non-financial beneficial outcomes for customers and their communities. It should ultimately provide a clearer, long-term and more holistic view of company value creation.
“A business that makes nothing but money is a poor kind of business.” – Henry Ford.
- Improve bankmecu’s business:
Considerable progress has been made to embed sustainability within all aspects of bankmecu’s operation.
Developing an integrated report will help us to understand this integration within the business better and assist us to identify material financial and non-financial risks and opportunities. This will in turn drive company strategy, governance and stakeholder engagement practices.
Linking data will assist identification of material risks and not just the financial ones. It will show opportunities for performance improvement.
- Strengthen bankmecu’s stakeholder engagement activity:
Stakeholder engagement practices will be improved to identify key material issues. Key material issues will be used to communicate the bankmecu story in a more succinct and meaningful way.