This virtual complimentary is brought to you by FT Board Director Programme and FT Corporate Subscription, where we hosted a panel of subject matter experts from Ashurst, TTI and Macquarie, moderated by Simon Mundy, FT Moral Money Editor.

This panel discussion will focus on some of the most topical and challenging questions in the environmental, social and governance space. How can businesses avoid accusations of greenwashing by ensuring that their bold words come alongside real results? Where should businesses focus their effort and resources to become ESG leaders? And what are the key developments to watch out for in policy and regulation?

4 key takeaways:

• "This was a really stimulating discussion as our panelists and audience dug into some of the thorniest questions in the sustainable business and finance debate – and offered some valuable pointers towards potential ways forward." Simon Mundy, Moral Money Editor, FT
• "Concerns around greenwashing will continue hand in hand with the growing trends towards ESG disclosure. As organisations make disclosures and commitments voluntarily or as required by regulation and rules, they will need to ensure that they are clear and transparent. Organisations that get this right are in the best position to take advantage of the opportunities of the transition to a sustainable and resilient future." Anna-Marie Slot, Global ESG and Sustainability Partner, Ashurst
• "From a corporate perspective, ESG is a source of both ambition and anxiety. No one wants to be accused of greenwashing, but doing nothing is even worse, and only by being proactive can a company hope to be fairly judged by investors and raters. Some level of pushback on the ESG concept is healthy, as grappling with critics can raise the bar on ESG decision making and disclosure." Ginny Wilmerding, INED, TTI and Partner, FGS Global
• “From an investor standpoint, the campaign to root out greenwashing is pushing fund managers out of the hazy ‘green-ish’ or ‘sustainability light’ funds. Partly, they are shying away from promoting sustainable objectives entirely (‘greenhushing’), which looks problematic. However this is only part of the story. Many fund managers are – rather than backing away, doubling down on sustainability objectives, leading to more robust sustainable investment products that could have real impact.” Charles Yonts, Head of Asian ESG Research, Macquarie

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