Borsa İstanbul Sustainability Platform Declaration signed by the Platform Members

Sustainability Platform, initiated by Borsa İstanbul in 2013 to make evaluations on sustainability efforts to ensure efficiency in sustainability efforts, and to create a network for discussing the joint steps to be taken regarding sustainability, became official upon the signing of the Declaration on March 3, 2015.

Sustainability Platform, which aims to bring together non-governmental institutions (professional associations, societies and organizations working on sustainability and supporting the sustainable development target), international organizations and public regulatory authorities, defined its targets through the Declaration, and demonstrated the working principles upon which its members agreed.

The current members of the Sustainability Platform are, in addition to Borsa İstanbul, Capital Markets Board (CMB), the Banks Association of Turkey (TBB), Turkish Capital Markets Association (TSPB), Corporate Governance Association of Turkey (TKYD), Business World and Sustainable Development Association (SKD), Global Compact Turkey, Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) Turkey, Turkish Industry and Business Association (TÜSİAD), Turkish Investor Relations Society (TÜYİD), Sustainability Academy and Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum (CGFT).

Initiated by Borsa İstanbul, the Platform aims to create a synergy of its members’ activities, and aims to raise awareness on sustainability and strengthen the perception of sustainability on the side of the public, the media and the business world. The Platform is also designated to share the good practices that contribute to sustainable development for spreading such practices, work towards ensuring that sustainability issues are included in various plans, programs, regulations and legal arrangements in general, to support the decision making mechanisms of regulatory authorities, and give opinions.

Borsa İstanbul Executive Vice President Mustafa Kemal Yılmaz chaired the Platform’s round table meeting on March 3, 2015. At the meeting, Yılmaz emphasized that Turkey will significantly contribute to the Platform in 2015, when she will be leading G20, and went on to say that professional trainings, awareness activities aimed at SMEs, and supply chain-focused efforts play an important role in spreading sustainability, and that the Platform will accelerate its activities particularly in this area.

At the meeting, the participants underlined that in order for sustainability to be reflected in companies’ operation methods and strategies, it must be adopted by Board members and senior managers. The participants also expressed that applying a long-term perspective in decision making processes is very important.