What information does the survey ask for?

The survey asks about:

  • your knowledge of the EU Taxonomy;

  • the current availability of relevant data;

  • the alignment of your companies’ activities with the technical screening criteria (TSC), which determine the substantial contributions and do no significant harm (DNSH) criteria for the Taxonomy’s environmental objectives; and

  • your company’s implemented minimum social safeguard provisions.

Will the results of this survey/the taxonomy-alignment of my company’s activities be made public?

Results from the survey and the interviews will be included in the reports. The reports will mainly include statements on the results of aggregated data. Individual results of the survey will not be made public without the explicit consent of the participant.

Will the final results be shared with the German Federal Ministry for the Environment or other governmental institutions?

In accordance with current legislation on data protection and the protection of business secrets, the survey results will be provided to the client (German Federal Ministry for the Environment) in anonymised and aggregated form. adelphi will not share conclusions on the sustainability performance of individual companies without the company’s explicit consent.

Which companies were invited to participate in the survey?

All companies included in one of the selected stock indices have been invited to participate in this survey.1 While it is not possible to predict how many companies will ultimately participate, the project has already attracted considerable interest, not least because of the relevance of the EU Taxonomy in the future.

How can my company benefit from participating in this survey/project?

By participating in this project, you will have the opportunity to:

  • Prepare for future sustainability reporting standards;
  • Discuss challenges in assessing the sustainability of your business;
  • Help to inform the legislative process by identifying reporting barriers;
  • Position yourself as a European front-runner in sustainability disclosure.

How can I participate in this project beyond the survey?

The project team will ask a number of companies that participated in the survey to participate in in- depth interviews. However, participation in those interviews is completely voluntary, as is the participation in the survey. The project team will evaluate the results from the survey, including your contribution, regardless of whether your company decides to participate in an interview.

How does the survey differ from the in-depth interviews?

The results of the survey are intended to give a meaningful indication of the alignment of the activities of major European companies with the EU Taxonomy and to gather information on the challenges and benefits those companies anticipate from the EU Taxonomy. The interview will cover the gaps, challenges and opportunities that companies mentioned or became aware of during their self- assessment in the survey. Furthermore, during the interviews, adelphi will discuss insights gained through the evaluation of the survey.

How does this survey relate to ISS ESG's Taxonomy assessments?

ISS ESG will assess the alignment of 70 selected companies’ activities with the EU Taxonomy based on companies’ reports and additional desk-research, taking into account existing data and the expertise of ISS ESG Ratings.

The project team will use the results of ISS ESG’s assessments to examine the plausibility of the answers received in the survey. Among other things, the team will analyze whether companies’ self- assessment of their Taxonomy alignment corresponds to ISS ESG’s assessment and whether they can discern patterns or deduce reasons for any discrepancies.

 

[1] The main stock indices in Europe are: EURO STOXX (Europe), FTSE 100 (United Kingdom), CAC 40 (France), DAX (Germany), AEX (Niederlande), OMX Stockholm 30 (Sweden), IBEX 35 (Spain), FTSE MIB (Italy), OMX Copenhagen 20 (Denmark), OMX Helsinki 25 (Finland), BEL 20 (Belgium), ISEQ Overall (Irland), ATX (Austria) and WIG20 (Poland).