22 November 2023, Dublin, Ireland
The UN SSE initiative and IFRS Foundation were invited to hold an in-person workshop on applying the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards at Euronext Dublin as part of Climate Finance Week Ireland (CFWI). Hosted jointly with the International Sustainable Finance Centre of Excellence (ISFCOE) and Euronext, the capacity building event gave participants the opportunity to interact with the top experts on the new standards.
“We were delighted to host this important workshop on applying the new IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. Participants at the event from our market really benefited from the depth of experience and expertise of the superb trainers who explained the concepts and shared their knowledge in a very practical way,” said Daryl Byrne, CEO, Euronext Dublin.
Climate Finance Week Ireland is supported by Skillnet Ireland and sponsored by AIB, who helped to kick off the capacity building workshop at Euronext, highlighting the key role that capacity building plays also in their own lending strategy.
“It is important that companies use high quality, globally accepted accounting and sustainability disclosure standards, so that readers of accounts can assess the progress that firms are making on the sustainability agenda, the key challenge facing our generation. As new International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) Sustainability Disclosure Standards land, capacity building and development of skills is critical. This training program run by the UN SSE and the IFRS Foundation was a great opportunity to hear directly from global experts how the new standards should be applied and the steps that firms can take to prepare. At AIB we consider capacity building to be a key prerequisite to delivering our sustainability strategy including our ambition that 70 per cent of new lending will be green or transition by 2030,” said Mary Whitelaw, Chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer, AIB. Ms. Whitelaw is on the industry steering committee of Sustainable Finance Skillnet which also supported CFWI.
The SSE and IFRS Foundation provided training for participants as part of the newly launched joint training program in collaboration with stock exchanges. The training program has been designed to enhance adoption through capacity building on a global scale. By leveraging the networks of stock exchanges, this training program ensures that market participants around the world can receive accessible, hands-on training that is globally consistent from top experts on the new IFRS Sustainability Standards.
“Stock Exchanges are uniquely positioned to promote best practice, knowledge sharing and collaboration that creates long-term value for issuers and investors. This new first of its kind training on IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards S1 and S2 developed in partnership with the UNSSEI is a unique opportunity for issuers to get up to speed on the new standards and learn from their peers. A huge thanks to Euronext Dublin for leading the way bringing this unique opportunity to its market. We look forward to working with many more exchanges across the coming 12 months and beyond,” said Mardi McBrien, Chief of strategic affairs and capacity building, IFRS Foundation.
“By working together with the IFRS Foundation on this first-ever global training program on the new standards, we’re ensuring that every market, from the smallest to the largest, receives the same high-quality, interactive training to ensure the globally-consistent adoption of the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. We’re grateful to Euronext Dublin for being the first exchange to host our training in an in-person setting,” said Tiffany Grabski, SSE Academy Head.
To learn more about the SSE Academy and the training programs available, visit https://sseinitiative.org/academy
