ROMANIA CST INDEX: The corporate sustainability ranking in Romania is announcing the 2021 results

The Azores Sustainability & CSR Services agency has launched the sixth edition of ROMANIA Corporate Sustainability & Transparency INDEX (CST INDEX), formerly Romania CSR Index, the most important assessment of the sustainability and corporate responsibility field in Romania.  The results of the ranking have been announced during the sixth edition of the Best Practices in Corporate Sustainability hybrid event, live-streamed on Facebook and Youtube on December 9^th, 2021, under the motto Sustainability is Unstoppable. So are you!

What is ROMANIA CST INDEX?

Romania Corporate Sustainability & Transparency Index (ROMANIA CST INDEX) is a complex analysis, unique in Romania, by which the sustainability indicators of companies are assessed from the perspective of performance and transparency in areas such as climate change, policies concerning diversity and anticorruption, responsibility for the employees, responsible marketing or value chain.

For developing this index, over 750 companies have been analysed, more specifically the companies in Romania that have over 500 employees, but also other smaller companies that have published sustainability reports.

Read more about

Former athlete Ana Maria Branza to carry Olympic Flame in France for Olympic Games

read more

What is the methodology that underlies ROMANIA CST INDEX?

The assessment behind ROMANIA CST INDEX 2021 starts from a scorecard with 10 categories and 70 sustainability indicators that refer both to sustainability strategy and targets and also to the economic, environmental and social impact of companies. The final score of each company is calculated according to weightings specific to the industry of the evaluated company.

Publicly available information is taken into account, found in sustainability reports, non-financial statements or on corporate websites, reported in Romanian language for the 2020 financial year.

The scorecard is an assessment tool aligned to the most important standards or international references from the corporate sustainability and social responsibility fields:

• Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• 2014/95/UE & The Proposal for a Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD);
• GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards (GRI Standards);
• CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project);
• Business for Societal Impact (formerly known as LBG).

Which are the most important changes in the methodology of ROMANIA CST INDEX 2021?

2021 has brought some important changes regarding Romania CST Index indicators. A new category has been introduced, labelled Climate Change, in which more indicators have been introduced, such as reducing the greenhouse gas emissions Scope 1, 2 and 3, and the objectives set out in this area, or the production and consumption of renewable energy.

What are the objectives of the index?

The index aims to be a useful tool for both the private sector and the authorities, NGOs or various communities. The results of the index can be used for developing a roadmap that would help to increase the corporate sustainability performance, for benchmarking at industry level or top performers, or for ensuring the alignment of the corporate strategy to the Sustainable Development Goals.

“There is growing evidence that the private sector can have a significant impact on reaching the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, we have focused on assessing the sustainability reports of Romanian companies in order to outline an overall perspective regarding their involvement and how they perform from year to year. The number of companies that report is still low, we are talking about 4.4% of over 750 companies that have more than 500 employees. However, we have noticed that the number of reports show an increasing trend and we hope that the EU Proposal for a Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will progressively animate this field.”, explains Alina Liciu, The Azores Managing Partner.

The companies that have received distinctions in ROMANIA CST INDEX 2021:

• Gold Level Recognition: Kaufland Romania, Coca-Cola HBC Romania, HeidelbergCement Romania, Antibiotice, Raiffeisen Bank, CEZ Romania, Telekom Romania, Banca Transilvania, Lidl Romania.
• Silver Level Recognition: Romgaz, GreenPoint Management, Romstal.
• Bronze Level Recognition: Grupul Digi | RCS-RDS, Transelectrica.

Best Practices in Corporate Sustainability: the launch event for ROMANIA CST INDEX 2021 results

The Azores Sustainability & CSR Services annually organizes a launch event for the index results and for highlighting best practices in sustainability and community investments as well as outlining new trends in sustainable development.

Top professionals at international level and important players in the field of sustainability in Romania have revealed insights into the way a company can achieve the best results in the aftermath of investing in sustainability and in communities:

• Guillaume Lafortune, Director of the Paris Office of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)
• Elaine Cohen, Author & Top 100 Global Thought Leader of Trustworthy Business and Sustainability, Managing Partner Beyond Business
• Eileen Chen, Sustainability Communication Consultant, Radley Yeldar

The speakers from Romania, representatives of some companies with great results in corporate sustainability:

• Adina Tudor – Customer Sustainability Partnerships Manager, Coca-Cola HBC Romania;
• Claudia Oprescu – CSR Expert – BCR Architect, Marketing and Communication Department, Banca Comercială Română;
• Valer Hancaș, Corporate Affairs & Communication Director, Kaufland Romania & Moldova;
• Irina Ionescu – General Manager, GreenPoint Management;
• Andreea Ghiocel – Operational Manager Reporting Division, The CSR Agency;
• Martha Rusoiu – CSR Specialist, The PR, Internal Communication & CSR Department, People & Brand Division, CEZ Romania;
• Alina Liciu, Managing Partner, The Azores Sustainability & CSR Services.

The moderator of the event was Victor Georgescu – Founder, LifeHax Solutions.

The motto of the event, “Sustainability is Unstoppable. So are you!” highlights the fact that, nowadays, sustainability and responsibility have become the norm, they are unstoppable and only companies that successfully integrate this kind of business in their DNA will be on the upswing.

The event partners for Best Practices in Corporate Sustainability 2021 were:  Coca-Cola HBC Romania, Banca Comercială Română, Ariston Thermo Romania, Transelectrica, Romgaz, GreenPoint Management and CEZ Romania.

The strategic partners of the event were: Sustainable Development Solutions Network (United Nations) and LifeHax Solutions.

More details are available on the agency’s website:

• https://www.theazores.ro/romania-cst-index-2021/
• https://www.theazores.ro/events/best-practices-in-corporate-sustainability-2021/despre-eveniment-2/