Corporate social responsibility--taking the lead.

Russia recently acclaimed the United Nation's Framework Convention on Climate Change, more commonly know as The Kyoto Protocol. This will result in the implementation of an international and legally binding agreement to reduce greenhouse gases by 5% in 2012 compared to 1990 levels. The Kyoto Protocol was scheduled to come into force early in 2005.

Russia's decision was momentous--if they had rejected the Protocol, it would have become a dead letter. However, now that it has been signed, the Canadian government and Canadian businesses have to prepare for change. Environmental management should become more of a growth industry than it already is.

Management accountants could play an important role in this changing landscape. The value of strategic CMAs, who can look at the strategic scope of a company's operations and pinpoint where added value lies, will become ever greater as more companies adopt corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting models and sustainability management practices. In our first feature this issue, David Crawford, CMA, explains how management accountants can use their skills and tools at their disposal, such as CMA Canada's Management Accounting Guidelines, to become indispensable champions of corporate sustainability management. Turn to page 20 for the full story.

A variety of Canadian organizations have already embraced CSR or triple bottom line (TBL) reporting. A number of them met in Toronto recently for a one-day summit. During the day, representatives from these organizations shared their success stories and their frustrations with managing the reporting process. Their frank opinions can be found in our feature, "Corporate social responsibility--where do we really stand?" on page 28.

Voortman Cookies Ltd. is a company that has reacted successfully to a number of social concerns over the years. Most recently, it has removed all trans fats from its products--the first cookie company to do so. Innovations like this have made the company the success that it is. This month, we talk to Linda Wright, controller of Voortman Cookies Ltd. and vice-president of Appleby Transportation, Voortman's own transport company, to find out more about the company's success, and how she keeps the company running with efficient accounting and an effective supply chain.

China's State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) announced recently that it has developed a framework for calculating "Green GDP." Although details of the Green GDP index aren't yet public, the intention is to record both the value of increased output, as well as the cost of environmental degradation and resource depletion in national accounts. This could be a boon to Canadian companies looking for opportunities overseas. With the right business model, Canadian companies specialized in pollution prevention or reduction technologies could find willing buyers in this very substantial market. For more information, read the Global View column in this issue.

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Robert Colman

Editor-in-Chief