What are Value Factors?
🌍 Today marks a major step forward in democratising access to the data needed to advance impact accounting. GIST Impact and WifOR Institute are excited to announce the joint release of our Value Factors, using a common framework established by the Capitals Coalition and supported by the Value Balancing Alliance (VBA) and the International Foundation For Valuing Impacts (IFVI). In a radically transparent move for two organisations that would otherwise be seen as competitors, this document makes public, for the first time, a framework, methodology summary and collection of coefficients (Value Factors) that together allow for the location-specific valuation of business impacts across 25 countries. ➡ Why are we doing this? We live in a world of growing volatility and risk, worsened by economic models that overlook the vital benefits and changes in natural, human and social capital. A sustainable economic system requires a fair and standardised institutional framework that measures and values corporate impacts across all capitals (natural, human, social and financial) - otherwise known as impact accounting. Value Factors are essential components of impact accounting, which allow for the calculation of impacts in a comprehensive, standardised, and above all, science-based way. But, whilst there are a growing number of organisations developing their own Value Factors, businesses and the public have thus far lacked access to a unified collection of Value Factors according to a common Value Framework, enabling actionable insights and streamlined implementation. At GIST Impact, we believe in competing over delivery (transparency, confidence and accessibility) rather than ownership or market share. This, we believe, is the path forward to accelerate the much-needed transition to an impact economy. We also acknowledge that due to lack of formalised governance in this space to date, the wider business community seeks guidance for accessible impact valuation and accounting, and they should be encouraged and enabled to do so in the public interest. That’s why we’ve chosen to collaborate with WifOR Institute on this initiative, and have received strong support from the key two organisations who are working to build out governance principles and methodological alignment - the Capitals Coalition and IFVI - as well as the key business coalition for impact accounting, the VBA. ➡ What’s next? We invite businesses, especially SMEs, to review the document and contact GIST Impact and WifOR Institute for more details to get started on their impact accounting journey. In line with our goal to further democratise access to Value Factors and transition to an impact economy, we also encourage other providers to join this groundbreaking initiative and make their data available for the benefit of all. 👉 Access the full document here - https://lnkd.in/ez8uimSF 📧 Reach out to us at info@gistimpact.com #ImpactAccounting #ValueFactors #Collaboration
