REN organises sustainability and esg events in partnership with Público newspaper

REN – Redes Energéticas Nacionais, in partnership with the Público newspaper, is organising three talks on sustainability and ESG. The "Meetings with the Future," scheduled for September in Lisbon and Porto, aim to explore topics concerning the impact of ESG (Environment, Social & Governance) factors in the business world. Jonathan Neilan from FTI Consulting, Chrissa Pagitsas from Pagitsas Advisors, and James Spurgeon from Sustain Value will be the main speakers at these events.

The first talk will take place in Lisbon at the Centro Cultural de Belém (CCB) on the morning of 18 September. The speaker for this event will be Jonathan Neilan from FTI Consulting, and the theme will be "Is it time to rethink the 'S' in ESG?". The discussion will be commented by Nuno Moreira da Cruz from the Católica Lisbon School of Business, and the panel will include Luís Amado (former B Lab Europe), Luís Neves (CEO of the Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative), and Margarida Couto (Grace).

On the following day, also at the CCB, the topic will be "What Have We Learned from Green Accounting?" with Chrissa Pagitsas, founder of Pagitsas Advisors, as the speaker. The commentary will be provided by Isabel Cruz (University of Coimbra), and the debate will feature Rui Ferreira dos Santos (NOVA University of Lisbon), Francisco Ferreira (Zero), and Afonso Arnaldo (Deloitte).

On these two days, the moderation will be led by Fernanda Freitas.
On 25 September, at the Serralves Foundation in Porto, the keynote speaker will be James Spurgeon from the University of Warwick and founder of Sustain Value, who will discuss "Natural Capital, reimagining corporate accounting". João Wengorovius Meneses, Secretary-General of BCSD Portugal, will provide commentary on the presentation, while the panel discussion will feature Nuno Gaspar Oliveira (CEO of Natural Business Intelligence), Marta Santamaria (Senior Director at Capitals Coalition), and Ricardo Pinheiro (CEO of Lusorecursos Portugal Lithium). The moderation will be conducted by David Pontes, Director of the Público newspaper.

Sustainability is a growing concern for businesses, which address it through the lenses of environmental, social, and governance perspectives. Companies approach sustainability from a three-fold perspective, integrating it into their strategies with a focus on ESG themes (Environment, Social, and Governance), adapting their businesses to the world of today.

REN’s sustainability strategy has four key points: the promotion of internal well-being, stakeholder engagement and satisfaction, environmental protection, and governance and ethics – and is directly linked to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), created in 2015 by the United Nations. The strategy shows the company’s commitment to reaching carbon neutrality by 2040, combating climate change while maintaining sustainable development that reinforces the company’s financial strength and high-quality operational performance.