Putting the I in ESG

Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities as Strategic Advantage of Sustainability Practices for Corporates and Investors

The technical guide by the ILO Global Business and Disability provides a framework for defining and reporting on corporate sustainability and Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) practices that make disability inclusion efforts more comprehensive.

This guide delves into the increasingly significant intersection of disability inclusion and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and sustainable business practices - thereby underscoring how these dimensions are becoming integral to corporate and investment strategies worldwide. The move by investors, rating agencies and companies to incorporate disability inclusion into the ESG ecosystem is still in its early stages. Clearer direction on the "why" and "how" to integrate disability inclusion into their ESG and wider sustainability strategies is essential for advancing these efforts and ensuring that disability inclusion becomes a meaningful part of ESG approaches and responsible business conduct.

Executive summary of the ESG guide - PDF 2.56 MB

The guide provides a framework for defining and reporting on corporate practices that make disability inclusion efforts more comprehensive. For each of the ten areas of this framework, between two and eight Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and existing corporate good practices are provided.

By offering a clear and structured approach to measuring disability inclusion, the guide enables the enterprises to set targets, track progress, identify gaps and drive meaningful outcomes for disability-inclusive, and thus sustainable economies. The proposed KPIs are aligned with the Network’s Self-Assessment Tool, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board standards, Global Reporting Initiative standards, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, ISO 26000, and The Valuable 500’s KPIs. This alignment ensures that disability-related metrics are not only consistent but also credible and comparable across industries and regions.

Download KPIs framework - PDF 6.95 MB