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This paper explores the relationship between environmental, social, and governance performance (ESGP) and firm value in both emerging and developed economies, with the moderating impact of environmental uncertainty and competitive advantage. Using secondary unbalanced data spanning from 2011 to 2022, we examine both the direct and non-linear effects of ESG performance on firm value, employing advanced econometric estimation techniques such as two-step system GMM (2sGMM) and two-stage least square (2SLS). The analysis finds that: (1) ESG performance positively influences firm value in both Chinese and US banks, and the results remain valid after robustness test; (2) The results also confirm that ESG performance non-linearly influence firm value across the samples, with an inverted U-shape relationship; (3) Additionally, we further investigate the moderating effects of environmental uncertainty and competitive advantage, uncovering that environmental uncertainty dampens the ESGP-firm value relationship, while competitive advantage further amplifies it. This study contributes to the understanding of how ESG performance can act as strategic assets that align managerial and stakeholder interests, and improve firm performance, by underpinning agency, stakeholder, and the resource-based view theory. Practical insights are also provided for policymakers, regulators, and financial institutions regarding the use of ESGP as a competitive tool in uncertain and dynamic market environments.

ESG (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance) criteria are becoming increasingly important for companies to activate risk management and create long-term value within the framework of issues such as environmental concerns, expectations, reporting obligations, circular economy, regulatory compliance and investment demands. This study aims to explain how ESG scores and a company's financial performance affect credit risk. A company's ESG performance plays an important role in determining its credit score, which is directly reflected in its financial success and risk profile, and in strategic decision-making processes for investors and policy makers. The study determined that the balance between ESG performance and credit scores should be well understood, especially that high ESG scores may not always mean low financial risk, and that the long-term benefits of ESG investments should be well understood, as they will increase short-term costs.

Climate change is increasingly recognised as a significant threat to economic development. As efforts to transition to a low-carbon economy continue to intensify, there is a growing realisation among proponents of sustainable development that public sector organisations need to disclose climate risks and opportunities associated with their operations.  Climate risk disclosures in the public sector offer countries unique insights and opportunities to pursue a sustainable path toward a low-carbon economy. Although there are many studies on climate-risk disclosures in the private sector, studies on the public sector are scarce. A systematic review of academic and grey literature was used to analyse the potential of adapting the TCFD framework to the public sector of South Africa. The study found that the TCFD recommendations provide a globally standardised approach to climate risk disclosure, allowing comprehensive reporting and comparison of climate-related information between sectors and entities to promote climate resilience and transition to a green economy. To effectively implement the recommendations of the TCFD in the public sector of South Africa, improved capacity building, strong legal and institutional frameworks, bold multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral approaches, adequate budget support and strong advocacy and communication efforts are needed. The study will be important to the IPSASB and other stakeholders to develop sustainability reporting standards for the public sector, as well as promote climate risk disclosures by government entities. 

Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) is an investment strategy developed to minimize the negative socio-economic and environmental impacts of each financial investment. Inconsistent results are presented during the analysis of the absolute risk-adjusted returns of SRI funds in comparison to conventional funds, and this negatively impacts investor awareness on adopting SRI funds as a viable substitute to conventional funds during economic crises. This research paper aims to improve SRI in South Africa by increasing the awareness of investors on viable investment substitutes, considering the amendments made to regulation 28 of the Pension Fund Act of 1956. These regulatory changes have made provisions to include principles of SRI into South African retirement fund investments and will increase the demand for SRI products in South Africa. The research objective is to provide empirical evidence on the absolute risk-adjusted performance of SRI funds relative to the performance of a matched set of conventional funds, before and during an economic crisis. The results are obtained by comparing the Sharpe ratio and Coefficient of Variation (CV) of each SRI fund to each matched conventional fund. The comparative analysis using the Sharpe ratio reveals that more sampled SRI funds (60%) outperform the sampled matched conventional funds (40%) before the COVID-19 pandemic. More Sample SRI funds (70%) outperform the sampled matched conventional funds (30%) during the COVID-19 pandemic. On an absolute RA basis, using the CV to compare SRI fund performance to conventional fund performance, the sampled SRI funds (50%) and the sampled matched conventional funds (50%) equally outperform one another before the COVID-19 pandemic however, more sampled SRI funds (60%) outperform the sampled matched conventional funds (40%) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results indicate that SRI funds can match and outperform conventional funds both before and during an economic crisis period and should be considered as a viable investment substitute.

Idiosyncratic risk refers to a distinct category of risk that impacts individual firms and is shaped by multiple aspects, including carbon performance and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) disclosures. This risk, particularly concerning environmental sustainability, can provide considerable hurdles for companies. This study aims to examine the influence of carbon performance and ESG disclosure on idiosyncratic risk, with the speed of adjustment serving as a moderating variable. This research examines coal production firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) from 2021 to 2023, with a sample of 26 companies selected through purposive sampling. This research utilizes quantitative methodologies, specifically multiple linear regression and a moderating variable approach. Data is derived from annual reports, financial statements, and sustainability reports of coal firms, as well as information from investing.com and the Katadata Corporate Sustainability Index. The data indicate an inverse correlation between carbon performance and idiosyncratic risk, as well as between ESG disclosure and idiosyncratic risk, suggesting that organizations with superior ratings in both domains encounter diminished idiosyncratic risk. Moreover, whereas the speed of adjustment does not reinforce the connection between carbon performance and idiosyncratic risk, it does augment the association between ESG disclosure and idiosyncratic risk.

The study sought to investigate the factors influencing environmental reporting in developing countries. This has been necessited by the inconsistances and non compliant to regulations and laws of environmental reporting among the developing countries. Through examining the factors that influence environmental reporting the study hope to establish context based solutions to the challenge of environmental reporting. The study used a quantitative research method and factor analysis to establish the factors influencing environmental reporting. It was discovered that there are seven key factors influencing environmental reporting among Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. These factors are: regulatory drivers, risk management drivers, market drivers, management influence drivers, strategic communication drivers, value creation drivers and legitimacy drivers. The study also revealed that there are several sub-factors that influencing environmental reporting under each key factor identified. The study concluded that environmental reporting influenced by the seven key factors. The study recommends that SADC sought for in-depth understanding of factors influencing environmental reporting. This is because understanding of the factors affecting environmental reporting is essential for the formulation and reporting that that satisfies stakeholders' requirements.

The current research investigates the effect of Corporate Social Investment (CSI) on the Human Development Index in South Africa. A quantitative longitudinal study conducted over 10 years reviewed the relationship between CSI and HDI in South Africa. The survey results confirmed a negative statistical relationship between CSI and HDI in South Africa. With a 1% increase in CSI, leading to a marginal decrease in human development. An implication of the study is that CSI spending is not reaching the citizens of South Africa, possibly due to systemic corruption in South Africa. The results of the study thus have significant policy implications for the implementation and administration of CSI projects in South Africa.

Climate change is increasingly recognised as a significant threat to economic development. As efforts to transition to a low-carbon economy continue to intensify, there is a growing realisation among proponents of sustainable development that public sector organisations need to disclose climate risks and opportunities associated with their operations.  Climate risk disclosures in the public sector offer countries unique insights and opportunities to pursue a sustainable path toward a low-carbon economy. Although there are many studies on climate-risk disclosures in the private sector, studies on the public sector are scarce. A systematic review of academic and grey literature was used to analyse the potential of adapting the TCFD framework to the public sector of South Africa. The study found that the TCFD recommendations provide a globally standardised approach to climate risk disclosure, allowing comprehensive reporting and comparison of climate-related information between sectors and entities to promote climate resilience and transition to a green economy. To effectively implement the recommendations of the TCFD in the public sector of South Africa, improved capacity building, strong legal and institutional frameworks, bold multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral approaches, adequate budget support and strong advocacy and communication efforts are needed. The study will be important to the IPSASB and other stakeholders to develop sustainability reporting standards for the public sector, as well as promote climate risk disclosures by government entities. 

Sustainability has become a key focus for many small manufacturing enterprises, especially as they face growing pressure to operate responsibly in economic, social, and environmental terms. This study explores how the three elements of the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) work together and influence each other in shaping sustainable practices. Rather than looking at these elements in isolation, the study focuses on how they interact within small manufacturing enterprises and how this interplay can create new opportunities for improving sustainability. Using both theory and practical insights, the study identifies ways in which organizations can better align their strategies to achieve long-term value and stability. The findings show that when the TBL elements are balanced and connected, organizations are more likely to succeed in building resilience and meeting broader sustainability goals. This study offers practical guidance for leaders and decision-makers who want to use the TBL framework not just as a reporting tool, but as a way to guide meaningful change. A scientific questionnaire was distributed to 450 small manufacturing enterprises who were chosen on a stratified probability sampling method. The research data were subject to correlation analysis.

The study aims to develop a framework for stakeholder management planning to guide entities in using holistic structured and tailored approaches that effectively guide stakeholder management. The study was inspired by perceived inadequacies of current frameworks to provide actionable solutions to stakeholder management planning. The study is underpinned by pragmatism and involves mixed methods research consisting of quantitative and qualitative approaches. A stratified random sampling method is used with the target population being 55 companies listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange covering the period 2019-2023. The theoretical framework was anchored on the stakeholder theory by Edward Freeman (1984).  Questionnaires (n=215) are analysed using SPSS version 26 while 12 semi-structured interview guides are analysed using NVIV0 version 14 with 10 local corporate governance practitioners validating the framework. The Quantitative techniques used are Cronbach alpha, exploratory factor analysis, regression and ANOVA.   Findings were that variables from the study namely the definitive / latent criteria, communication, engagement and collaboration sub-plans are sufficiently positively related to stakeholder management planning and several sub-themes emerged around them to produce a holistic framework of stakeholder management planning. The framework is expected to see the improvement of stakeholder management planning in practice.