Library | ESG issues
Social
The social pillar in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) assesses a organisation’s impact on people and society. It covers labour practices, diversity and inclusion, human rights and community engagement. Prioritising social responsibility not only benefits society but also mitigates risks, strengthens reputation, and creates long-term value for businesses and investors.
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Closing the loop: The quest for gender parity in African tech
This report examines gender parity in Africa's technology sector. While Africa leads in women's STEM representation globally, significant drop-offs occur at key career stages. The research identifies barriers such as biases and funding gaps, offering actionable strategies to enhance recruitment, support career progression, and increase access to start-up financing.
Study on national climate litigation
This report analyses strategic climate litigation trends across Europe, examining cases against states and corporations. It highlights key legal strategies, including human rights claims and polluter-pays mechanisms, while assessing the challenges of enforcing damages and the evolving obligations of governments and high-emitting businesses.
Sheltering from oil shocks: Measures to reduce impacts on households and businesses
This International Energy Agency report outlines measures to reduce the impact of oil supply disruptions on households and businesses. It details short-term and structural strategies across road and air transport, industry, and cooking fuels to lower demand and shield vulnerable consumers from rising energy costs.
Employment and social trends: May 2026 update: Growing labour market risks of the Middle East crisis
This report analyses the global labour market risks of the Middle East crisis. It estimates significant potential declines in working hours and real labour incomes, highlighting heightened vulnerabilities in the Arab States and the Asia-Pacific region due to disrupted energy markets, supply chains, and transport routes.
Counting what counts: A compass of progress for people and planet
This report presents a new framework and a dashboard of 31 indicators proposed by the UN High-Level Expert Group to measure societal progress beyond GDP. It emphasises equitable, inclusive and sustainable well-being, offering actionable recommendations for global adoption and enhanced statistical capacity by 2027.
Climate Shift Index: Humid Heat
Climate Shift Index: Humid Heat tracks and calculates the influence of human-caused climate change on daily humid heat conditions across the globe.
Digitalisation and innovation: Opportunities and risks for financial health
This report examines the impact of digital innovation on financial health. It outlines opportunities in payments, credit, savings, and insurance, whilst highlighting emerging risks such as fraud, overindebtedness, and ill-suited investments. The authors propose policy responses to enhance regulatory frameworks and promote responsible digitalisation in financial services.
OHCHR Knowledge Gateway
The OHCHR Knowledge Gateway provides access to human rights knowledge, practices, and resources to support implementation of international standards.
The impact of extreme temperatures on respiratory mortality in Brazil: Evaluating regional adaptations to different thermal environments
This report analyses the impact of extreme temperatures on respiratory mortality across 646 Brazilian municipalities from 2010 to 2020. Findings reveal a J-shaped exposure-response curve, with heat-related deaths dominating in tropical northern regions, whilst cold-related mortality predominates in the subtropical south, underscoring the need for region-specific climate adaptation policies.
CARE for women: Investing in care delivery to improve women’s lives and livelihoods
This report examines the 34% of the global women's health gap caused by care delivery failures. Focusing on cardiovascular risk and perinatal depression, it outlines the CARE framework to standardise screening and referral pathways, demonstrating that preventative care investments yield a three- to six-fold return.
Extreme heat risk governance: Framework and toolkit
This report presents a comprehensive framework and toolkit to help governments and stakeholders manage extreme heat risk. It provides actionable guidance, a maturity assessment tool, and strategies to operationalise governance and develop effective heat action plans across multiple sectors and timescales.
Food systems and antimicrobial resistance: Impacts on food safety, animal production and trade
This report examines the impact of antimicrobial resistance in food systems on public health, animal production, and international trade. It highlights the role of food-borne pathogens and commensal bacteria in transmitting resistance, evaluates risk analysis models, and recommends enhanced surveillance, antimicrobial stewardship, and standardisation of global trade regulations.
The state of private impact investing in Canada
This report analyses the Canadian private impact investing market, which targets CA$17.7 billion in capital across 218 products. It examines market size, geographic distribution, and primary impact areas, noting a concentration in venture capital and highlighting the need for aggregation strategies and blended-finance models to scale investments.
Flood risk, insurance, and housing in the United States
This research provides household-level estimates of flood risk exposure across socioeconomic groups in the US. It reveals that high-income households own a disproportionate share of floodplain property wealth, whilst a vulnerable subset of low-income, uninsured homeowners faces severe financial risks from flood damage and rising insurance premiums.
Frontier AI auditing: Toward rigorous third-party assessment of safety and security practices at leading AI companies
This report proposes a rigorous framework for third-party auditing of frontier AI systems to verify safety and security claims. Addressing the opacity of current self-assessments, it advocates for structured AI Assurance Levels, deep access to non-public information, and continuous monitoring to enable confident deployment and standardisation across the industry.
Cracking the credit code: Alternative data and AI for financial inclusion
This report explores how alternative data and artificial intelligence are redefining credit scoring to enhance financial inclusion for women and underserved borrowers. It analyses market trends, evaluates the risks of algorithmic bias, and provides actionable recommendations to scale responsible, inclusive credit access across emerging markets.