Notre Dame’s Center for Accounting Research and Education hosts Accountability in a Sustainable World conference

The University of Notre Dame’s Center for Accounting Research and Education (CARE) at the Mendoza College of Business will host a two-day virtual conference to explore the central role of accountability in ensuring a sustainable world. The 2022 CARE Conference: Accountability in a Sustainable World, is a two-part online series held September 21 and 23. The aim of the conference is to promote dialogue among academics and practitioners about sustainability, accountability, data and measurement and other critical issues related to a sustainable future; notably, the four key pillars of: investment, assurance, regulation and target setting. Accountability by all individuals, corporations, governments, NGOs, investors, decision makers, regulators and others will be explored and discussed.

“I am excited about the 2022 conference not only because of the provocative, highly informed, thoughtful and influential speakers and panelists we will hear from, but also because of the virtual platform which allows people from all over the world to take part,” said Peter Easton, CARE director and the conference host and co-organizer. “I encourage anyone interested in sustainability, regulation, ESG, CSR and measurement to attend. Our goal is an audience in excess of 3,000, which will be the largest conference ever held at the Mendoza College of Business.” Accountability in a Sustainable World features talks and panel discussions by some of the world’s most distinguished thought leaders in accounting and sustainability, including Robert Kaplan, Senior Fellow, Marvin Bower, Professor of Leadership Development Emeritus at Harvard Business School; Carine Smith Ihenacho, Chief Governance and Compliance Officer at Norges Bank Investment Management (NGIM); and Robert Eccles, Founding Chairman, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and Visiting Professor of Management Practice at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School, as well as four former SEC Commissioners. (See full agenda.) The CARE Conference brings together accountants, finance-professionals, law-professionals, lawmakers, standard-setters, economists, investors and scientists as well as academics from the sciences, accounting, finance, law and economics. The sessions are free to attend virtually and open to the public; participants must register in advance for the live conference and for access to on-demand streaming after the conference. The 2022 conference, which follows the successful 2021 CARE Conference on sustainability and responsible investing, will again be held during New York Climate Week in conjunction with Sustainable Investment Forum North America 2022. The Forum is the largest finance forum during Climate Week NYC, held in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP-FI), whose mission is to mobilize sustainable investment towards a 1.5°C world. Climate Week NYC 2022 marks its 14th year as the largest global climate event of its kind, bringing together the most influential leaders in climate action from business, government and the climate community in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly. The conference convenes at a critical juncture, six weeks ahead of COP27, where the commitment to deliver on the promise of $100 billion in annual funding for developing nations will be center stage, with private finance becoming a crucial part of that promise. Established in 2004, the Center for Accounting Research and Education at the University of Notre Dame supports academics worldwide in the creation and dissemination of accounting and investment knowledge through education, timely and thoughtful research, and partnering with accounting practice to inform the accounting and investment professionals of tomorrow. The Center recently launched Accountability in a Sustainable World Quarterly, a practitioner-focused journal in the accounting for sustainability and responsible investing space.  The journal is intended to advance the creation and dissemination of knowledge and understanding of issues of topical practical relevance through the publication of rigorous, peer-reviewed, research and thought-pieces. The first issue will be released in mid-November to coincide with COP27.