Deck 21: Measuring and Reporting Sustainability

Question 1

What is the best way to make businesses take into account the external costs of their activities?

A)Implement fines
B)Internalising those costs
C)Implement penalties
D)None of the above.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Sustainability does not include:

A)climate change.
B)recycling.
C)the impact of globalisation on living standards in developing countries.
D)None of the above are excluded.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

A 'cap and trade' approach to greenhouse gas control is a 'stick' rather than a 'carrot' approach.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The term 'dynamic complexity' in sustainable decision-making refers to the way in which the factors in the decision change and respond to each other.

Question 5

Which of these product labels does not indicate socially and environmentally responsible production conditions?

A)A 'made in Canada' label
B)A fair trade label
C)A rainforest alliance for coffee beans label
D)None of the above;i.e.all are labels indicating socially and environmentally responsible production conditions.

Question 6

Australian companies must follow the ______________________________as their social and environmental reporting framework.

A)Standards for Environmental Management
B)Global Reporting Initiative
C)Australian Sustainability Index
D)These are not compulsory.

Question 7

Currently,very few organisations are truly sustainable.

Question 8

Sustainability requires 'systems thinking'.Which of these is a part of systems thinking?

A)Accepting uncertainty and ambiguity
B)Challenging our world view
C)Recognising the larger context
D)All of the above.

Question 9

The primary purpose of making an organisation sustainable is to:

A)make sure the organisation survives in the long-term.
B)ensure that present needs are met without compromising the needs of future generations.
C)reduce greenhouse gases to a very low level.
D)make sure its profits are sustainable over the long-term.

Question 10

Traditional profits measures can measure sustainability;the information just has to be rearranged.

Question 11

What is the externalised cost of electricity generation referred to as?

A)The cost of constructing the plant
B)The cost of buying coal
C)The cost of purchasing water to cool the plant
D)None of the above are externalised costs.

Question 12

The following statements concerning a 'cap and trade' approach to reducing greenhouse gases are true EXCEPT for:

A)emission polluters will be given greenhouse gas credits.
B)the government can reduce total levels of pollution by progressively putting more credits into the market.
C)the government will set a cap on the number of greenhouse credits.
D)organisations can sell unused credits and this creates an incentive to reduce emissions.

Question 13

A possible method of reducing a company's carbon footprint is:

A)planting trees.
B)injecting carbon dioxide into porous rock and thereby 'burying' it.
C)piping carbon dioxide kilometres below the ocean.
D)All of the above.

Question 14

Explain the meaning of 'externalities'.
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Question 15

With crisis comes opportunity.

Question 16

One of the consequences of the existence of externalised costs is that the market place,as it currently operates,does not achieve the optimal outcomes for society as a whole.

Question 17

A scheme that is designed to reduce greenhouse gases by providing economic incentives to achieve a reduction in these gas emissions is known as:

A)systems thinking.
B)a balanced scorecard.
C)an emissions trading scheme.
D)the ecological footprint scheme.

Question 18

In order,list the five steps in a decision-making process to achieve sustainability.
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Question 19

What is the most important factor in addressing social and environmental challenges?

A)The difficulty in collecting relevant information
B)Recognising and understanding the problem
C)Including all stakeholders
D)The interconnectedness of the causes and outcomes

Question 20

All of these statements are correct except:

A)many businesses profess a commitment to sustainable business practices.
B)eco-justice is an important concept of sustainability.
C)there is pressure from society for businesses to address social and environmental concerns.
D)all businesses currently accept that sustainability is their primary goal.

Question 21

As the reporting required from businesses under an emissions trading scheme will be the responsibility of financial accountants,the work of management accountants will not be affected.

Question 22

Environmental management accounting provides only non-financial measures of environmental-related performance.

Question 23

The business case for sustainability rests mostly on avoiding government penalties for poor environmental performance.

Question 24

What is the world's most widely used sustainability reporting framework referred to as?

A)The Global Reporting Initiative
B)The International Standards for Environmental Management
C)The Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting Framework
D)The Australian Sustainability Index

Question 25

It is not possible to achieve increased economic performance simultaneously with increased social and environmental performance.

Question 26

Which of these is not a Global Reporting Initiative principle for ensuring report quality?

A)Clarity
B)Accuracy
C)Length
D)Timeliness

Question 27

A criticism of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)is that compliance with its principles just means that an organisation is reporting only those aspects of social and environmental reporting that make it look good.

Question 28

The International Standards for Environmental Management Systems are ISO 14001 and ISO 14004.

Question 29

The following is NOT an indicator of social impact under the Global Reporting Initiative:

A)liquidity
B)occupational health and safety
C)labour/management relations
D)None;i.e.all are indicators of socially responsible reporting.

Question 30

Activity-based costing cannot be extended to include social and environmental costs.

Question 31

Why might a business undertake a sustainable approach within its organisation?

A)Increase its market share
B)Behave ethically
C)Improve relationships with suppliers
D)All of the above.

Question 32

The __________________________is an independent institution which develops and disseminates sustainable reporting guidelines globally.

A)Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
B)World Bank
C)Department of the Environment
D)All of the above.

Question 33

Pursuing sustainability almost always leads to a fall in the economic performance of an organisation.

Question 34

The Australian index used to rank companies on their sustainability is the:

A)Australian Corporate Sustainability Index.
B)ASX Sustainability Index.
C)Corporate Governance Social and Environmental Index.
D)Australian SAM Sustainability Index.

Question 35

The description in the next sentence relates to which of the Global Reporting Initiative's principles on report content? 'Information in a report should cover topics and indicators that reflect the organisation's significant economic environmental and social impacts,or that would substantively influence the assessments and decisions of stakeholders.'

A)Sustainability context
B)Completeness
C)Stakeholder inclusiveness
D)Materiality

Question 36

Specifically identifying in separate accounts the costs associated with aspects of environmental performance creates the information for managers to reduce those costs.

Question 37

'Green' products may achieve a premium in the market place.

Question 38

In which sector has the Global Reporting Initiative not issued sector supplement guidelines?

A)Non-government organisations
B)Small business
C)Financial services
D)None of the above;i.e.it has issued them in all of these sectors.

Question 39

The most universal reporting framework for sustainability is the International Standards for Environmental Management.

Question 40

Briefly explain what is meant by 'environmental management accounting' (EMA).
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Question 41

Which of the following have been identified as 'waste' in the Toyota production system?

A)Making defective products
B)Waiting time
C)Holding too large a quantity of inventory
D)All of the above are considered waste.

Question 42

The term used to describe the ongoing learning that an organisation must undertake to achieve sustainability is:

A)life-cycle analysis.
B)environmental management.
C)corporate social responsibility.
D)learning for sustainability.

Question 43

The tool used to study the impact of a firm's projects and operations on society at large,including the impact on individuals groups and communities,is known as a(n):

A)environmental impact assessment.
B)social impact assessment.
C)corporate governance.
D)risk assessment.

Question 44

'Learning for sustainability' is the term used to describe the ongoing learning that must go on within an organisation to achieve sustainability.

Question 45

Performing life-cycle analysis for a product may also mean looking at the costs of suppliers and customers.

Question 46

The statements concerning life-cycle analysis (LCA)are true EXCEPT for:

A)The definition of life-cycle always begins with the extraction of the raw materials and ends with the disposal of the product.
B)The broadest view of LCA recognises some of social or environmental impacts that are difficult to cost.
C)Life-cycle analysis may include costs incurred by the customer and the supplier.
D)No statement is incorrect;i.e.all are correct statements.

Question 47

Ways in which environmental performance can impact on an organisation's cash flow are: by affecting revenue (R);by affecting access to markets (M);by affecting costs (C);through climate change policies (CC).Using the letter(s)in brackets,state the main way the item in the following list would affect cash flow.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline { \text { Items } } & \text { RMMCKCC } \\\hline \text { 1. More efficient use of water. } & \\\hline \text { 2. A carbon trading scheme. } & \\\hline \text { 3. Recycling and reusing raw materials. } & \\\hline \text { 4. An ETS. } & \\\hline \text { 5. Launch of a 'green' version of a product. } & \\\hline \text { 6. Solar panels to feed excess electricity into the grid. } & \\\hline \text { 7. Environmental impact assessments. } & \\\hline \text { B. Introdurtion of a Grbon credit tading scheme. } & \\\hline\end{array}$$
1.More efficient use of water.
2.A carbon trading scheme.
3.Recycling and reusing raw materials.
4.An ETS.
5.Launch of a 'green' version of a product.
6.Solar panels to feed excess electricity into the grid.
7.Environmental impact assessments.
8.Introduction of a carbon credit trading scheme.

Question 48

The objectives for sustainability are unlikely to be completely met within an organisation.

Question 49

Which of these management accounting tools used to monitor an organisation's social and environmental efforts,is NOT a traditional tool?

A)Scenario Modelling
B)The Balanced Scorecard
C)Activity-based Costing
D)None of the above;i.e.all are adaptions of traditional tools.

Question 50

How does Professor Dexter Dunphy's research describe businesses that want to create a sustainable world by changing the very way they operate?

A)Compliance Reactive Minimalists
B)Bunker Wombats
C)Proactive Strategists
D)Transforming Futurists