ESG Doctrine's impact on the chosen economies of Poland and India

The article aims to show the different impacts of the ESG Doctrine on the economies of Poland and India. It also aims at filling a research gap regarding the comparison of India and Poland in terms of the ESG Doctrine's impact on their economies, with analysing the accessible data and measures of the World Bank and the European Commission's documents. The choice of the countries results from the author's interest in Asian countries, especially India, and from the author's nationality, making Poland a natural choice. The main research method is the analysis of available studies on the ESG Doctrine, its origins and the planned geoeconomic impact on the global economy, especially on Poland and India. The article uses qualitative research methods: of studying literature and legal acts, of analysis and synthesis, the descriptive method, and the deductive inference. In conclusion, Polish investors perceive the ESG Doctrine as a concern – as an idea stemming from restrictive environmental politics from the European Commission side rather than a business-wise one, so they are not eager to sacrifice their profits to ESG. In the case of India, the recent regulations of SEBI regarding BRSR ESG reporting may occur unfeasible. An important finding is that the United Nations with BlackRock, through open cooperation with the European Commission, can influence the effects of implementing the ESG Doctrine worldwide. The values of the article are in the analysis, synthesis and systematics of issues related to the effects of the ESG Doctrine on the economies of Poland and India.

Celem artykułu jest omówienie zróżnicowanego wpływu doktryny ESG na gospodarki Polski i Indii. Stanowi on również częściowe wypełnienie luki badawczej w zakresie porównań Indii i Polski w kategoriach wpływu doktryny ESG na gospodarki tych państw, wraz z analizą dostępnych danych oraz wskaźników Banku Światowego oraz dokumentów Komisji Europejskiej. Wybór tych państw wynika z jednej strony z zainteresowań autora krajami azjatyckimi, zwłaszcza Indiami, z drugiej zaś z jego narodowości, zgodnie z którą Polska stanowi naturalny wybór. Główną metodą badawczą jest analiza dostępnych opracowań dotyczących doktryny ESG, jej genezy oraz planowanego wpływu geoekonomicznego na gospodarkę światową, zwłaszcza Polski i Indii. W artykule wykorzystano jakościowe metody badawcze: metodę badania literatury i aktów prawnych, metodę analizy i syntezy, metodę opisową oraz wnioskowanie dedukcyjne. Z podsumowania wynika, że polscy inwestorzy postrzegają doktrynę ESG jako problem – jako ideę wynikającą z restrykcyjnej polityki środowiskowej Komisji Europejskiej, a nie z racji biznesowych, dlatego nie są oni skłonni do poświęcania swoich zysków na rzecz ESG. W przypadku Indii najnowsze regulacje SEBI dotyczące raportowania BRSR ESG mogą się okazać niewykonalne. Ważnym wnioskiem jest obserwacja, że ONZ wraz z Black- Rock, poprzez otwartą współpracę z Komisją Europejską, może wpływać na efekty wdrażania doktryny ESG na całym świecie. Atutami artykułu są analiza, synteza i systematyka zagadnień związanych z wpływem doktryny ESG na gospodarki Polski i Indii.

Abad-Segura, E. Cortés-García, F., & Belmonte-Urena, L. J. (2019). The sustainable approach to Corporate Social Responsibility: A global analysis and future trends. Sustainability, 11(19), 5382. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11195382

Baran, M., Kuźniarska, A., Makieła, Z. J., Sławik, A., & Stuss, M. M. (2022). Does ESG reporting relate to corporate financial performance in the context of the energy sector transformation? Evidence from Poland. Energies 15, 477. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15020477

Boffo, R., & Patalano, R. (2020). ESG investing: Practices, progress and challenges. OECD. www.oecd.org/finance/ESG-Investing-Practices-Progress-andChallenges.pdf (accessed 14.07.2023).

Casonato, F., Farneti, F., & Dumay, J. (2019). Social capital and integrated reporting: Losing legitimacy when reporting talk is not supported by actions. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-08-2018-0132

Crist, E. (2007). Beyond the climate crisis: A critique of climate change discourse. Telos, (141), 29–55.

Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups (2014). OJ EU L 330.

Domańska-Szaruga, B. (2011). Rola czynników ESG w budowaniu wartości przedsiębiorstwa. Współczesne Zarządzanie, (4). http://31.186.81.235:8080/api/files/view/12868.pdf (accessed 14.07.2023).

Dygas, R. (Ed.), Napiórkowski, T., & Milewicz, W. (2021). Wpływ wybranych krajów Azji oraz Republiki Federalnej Niemiec na budowanie nowego potencjału gospodarczego w kontekście realizacji celów zrównoważonego rozwoju Agendy 2030 ONZ. Oficyna Wydawnicza SGH. https://doi.org/10.33119/978-83-8030-491-8.2021

EDGAR (2022). CO2 emissions of all world countries. JRS science for policy report. https://edgar.jrc.ec.europa.eu/report_2022 (accessed 14.07.2023).

Efthymiou, L., Kulshrestha, A., & Kulshrestha, S. (2023). A Study on sustainability and ESG in the service sector in India: Benefits, challenges, and future implications. Administrative Sciences, 13(7). https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci13070165

Elkington, J. (2018). 25 Years Ago I coined the phrase "Triple Bottom Line." Here's why it's time to rethink it. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2018/06/25-years-ago-i-coined-the-phrase-triple-bottom-line-heres-why-im-giving-up-on-it (accessed 15.07.2018).

Erkens, M., Paugam, L., & Stolowy, H. (2015). Non-financial information: State of the art and research perspectives based on a bibliometric study. Comptabilité-Contrôle-Audit, 21(3). https://doi.org/10.3917/cca.213.0015

Esch, M., Schnellbächer, B., & Wald, A. (2019). Does integrated reporting information influence internal decision-making? An experimental study of investment behaviour. Business Strategy and the Environment, 28(4). https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2267

European Commission. (2017). EU-India Summit: Strengthening our strategic partnership and moving forward with our common agenda. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_17_3728 (accessed 13.07.2023).

European Ombudsman. (2020). The European Commission's decision to award a contract to BlackRock Investment Management to carry out a study on integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) objectives into EU banking rules. https://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/case/en/57060 (accessed 14.07.2023).

FOX Business. (2023a, July 5). BlackRock's Larry Fink on why he won't mention ESG anymore: "It's been weaponized by left and right". https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/blackrock-fink-wont-mention-esg-anymore-been-weaponized-left-right (accessed 10.10.2023).

FOX Business. (2023b, August 29). Vanguard joins BlackRock in rejecting more ESG proposals from shareholders. https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/vanguard-joins-blackrock-rejecting-esg-proposals-shareholders (accessed 10.10.2023).

Gołębiowski, T. (2023). ESG: tanio nie będzie. https://crn.pl/artykuly/esg-tanio-nie-bedzie/2 (accessed 09.08.2023).

Grove, H., & Clouse, M. (2018). Focusing on sustainability to strengthen corporate governance. Corporate Governance and Sustainability Review, 2(2), 38–47. https://doi.org/10.22495/cgsrv2i2p4

Gupta, E., & Rangaswamy, A. (2021). The importance of ESG and its application in India. Lexforti Legal Journal, 2(4). https://lexforti.com/legal-news/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/The-Importance-of-ESG-and-its-application-in-India.pdf (accessed 19.07.2023).

HLPF. (2023). High-level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development under the auspices of the General Assembly – SDG Summit. https://hlpf.un.org/sdg-summit# (accessed 22.07.2023).

Kamarck, E. (2019, September 23). The challenging politics of climate change. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/thechallenging-politics-of-climate-change/ (accessed 15.07.2023).

Keeley, T. (2022). Sustainable: Moving Beyond ESG to Impact Investing. Columbia Business School Publishing.

Maji, S. G., & Lohia, P. (2023). Environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and firm performance in India. Society and Business Review, 18(1), 175–194. https://doi.org/10.1108/SBR-06-2022-0162

Mendiratta, A., Singh, S., Yadav, S. S., & Mahajan, A. (2023, May 16). ESG controversies and firm performance in India: The moderating impact of government effectiveness. Global Business Review. https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509231151490

Mgbame, C. O., Aderin A., Ohalehi P., & Chijoke-Mgbame A. M. (2021). Achieving sustainability through environmental social governance reporting: Overcoming the challenges. Advances in Environmental Accounting & Management, 9. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-359820200000009002

Petelczyc, J. (2022). The readiness for ESG among retail investors in Central and Eastern Europe. The example of Poland. Global Business Review, 23(6), 1299–1315. https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509221114754

Regulation (EU) 2018/841 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions and removals from land use, land use change and forestry in the 2030 climate and energy framework, and amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 and Decision No 529/2013/EU (Text with EEA relevance). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32018R0841 (accessed 22.07.2023).

SEBI. (2021, May 10). Business responsibility and sustainability reporting by listed entities. Circular No. SEBI/HO/CFD/CMD-2/P/CIR/2021/562, 1–2. https://www.sebi.gov.in/legal/circulars/may-2021/business-responsibility-and-sustainability-reporting-by-listedentities_50096.html (accessed 14.07.2023).

SEBI. (2023, July 12). BRSR. Core – framework for assurance and ESG disclosures for value chain. Circular No. SEBI/HO/CFD/CFDSEC-2/P/CIR/2023/122. https://www.sebi.gov.in/legal/circulars/jul-2023/brsr-core-framework-for-assurance-and-esg-disclosures-forvalue-chain_73854.html (accessed 14.07.2023).

Somerville, P. (2020). A critique of climate change mitigation policy. Policy Press, 48(2), 355–378. https://doi.org/10.1332/030557319X15661682426163

Stecko, J. (2012). CSR 1.0 a CSR 2.0 porównanie i analiza pojęć. Modern Management Review (dawniej: Zarządzanie i Marketing), (3). https://doi.org/10.7862/rz.2012.zim.10

Thomson, I. (2015). 'But does sustainability need capitalism or an integrated report' A commentary on 'The International Integrated Reporting Council: A Story of Failure' by Flower, J. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 27, 18–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2014.07.003

Tylec, A. (2022). ESG reporting framework in Poland – the current state of affairs and perspectives. Scientific Papers of the Silesian University of Technology. Organization and Management Series, (157), 609–622.

World Bank Data. (2023). https://databank.worldbank.org/source/environment-social-and-governance-(esg)-data# (accessed 20.07.2023).