Sustainability Accounting Standards Board boosted as ex-SEC chair joins board

The nascent Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, which is promoting sustainability accounting standards for US listed companies, has been boosted by a number of senior figures – including former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Elisse Walter – joining its board.

Also becoming directors are Jack Ehnes, chief executive of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) and Peter Knight, one of the founding partners of sustainable boutique Generation Investment Management alongside Al Gore and David Blood.
The other new directors are Clara Miller, President of the F.B. Heron Foundation and former President and CEO of Nonprofit Finance Fund and Ted White, Managing Partner at Fahr LLC, the umbrella entity for Farallon Capital Management founder and philanthropist Tom Steyer.
Walter headed the SEC for what turned out to be an interim period between Mary Schapiro and current incumbent Mary Jo White, from December 2012 to April 2013.
Before becoming an SEC Commissioner in 2008, she was Senior Executive Vice President, Regulatory Policy & Programs, for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). She held the same position at the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD).“We have ambitious plans for the next few years,” said SASB Founder and Executive Director Jean Rogers. “The guidance of our new board members—who support the SEC’s disclosure reform agenda and bring mainstream investor representation—will be invaluable to accomplishing these goals.”
Ehnes added that sustainability through good corporate governance was key to creating long-term value for investors like CalSTRS. He said: “Service on the SASB board is an excellent opportunity to influence the real ways we measure this emerging trend.”

Remaining on the SASB board:
Bob Eccles, Harvard Business School (chair)
Steve Gunders, Deloitte & Touche (retired)
Dan Hanson, Jarislowsky Fraser
Erika Karp, Cornerstone Capital
Suz Mac Cormac, Morrison & Foerster
Catherine Odelbo, Morningstar
Aulana Peters, Dunn & Crutcher (retired)
Jean Rogers, SASB