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FAQ – ESG Collection

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To fill out the questionnaire on the ESG Data section, what resources can I use to help me?
Below you can find a list of each of the available resources and help channels we have prepared to help you:
– Tips: All questions come with associated tips that will inform you about the relevance of each question for the business. In this section you can also find ‘Technical Clarifications’ available for each question, and Examples of supporting evidence documents that you can upload.
– External Resources, Definitions and Policies: To learn more about a specific topic, or to explore more about legislation and regulation, we compiled relevant knowledge and external links that you can find under the ‘Resources’ section on the left side bar.
– Contact Us: You can reach out to us for help. Please go to our Contact Us page and describe the specific topics and/or questionnaire you would like additional clarification on. We will be very happy to help you.
What documents can I upload as Supporting Evidence for each question on the ESG Data section?
You can provide Sustanya with any formal documents that reflect your entity’s sustainability management system and support your answers to the questionnaire. Here are some examples of documents that can be provided (for illustration only): Annual Accounts approved reports, Sustainability, CSR Reports, Social / Environmental Audit Reports, HSE Policies, Code of Ethics/Conduct, Employee Handbooks, Certificates (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, among others).
Why should I upload supporting evidences?
Your ESG data and report can be generated as ´self disclosed´, or data can be verified by a third party. If third-party verification is required, you will need to upload documents as evidence to support the response provided. Even if you don’t need third-party verification, your ESG data and documents will be compiled and stored in a secure place for easy access in the future, representing the first step in your ESG digitalization process.
Having records of supporting documentation associated to the ESG data and information provided in a Report is a key part of guaranteeing your sustainability practices and performance.
You can always complete and approve your ESG Dataset without uploading any document. However, if you require third-party verification for your ESG data, a Verifier can only credit answers backed up by proper evidence. Please note that the following documentation may not be accepted by verifiers:
– Documents (general commitments and vague actions descriptions) created solely to complete questionnaire;
– Objectives, actions or ESG Reporting copied from another entity or online sources without reasonable evidence and assurance of implementation;
– Informal documentation (e.g. without the entity’s name or logo, without the issue or review date, photos etc.); and
– Evidence presented in the form of embedded documents/weblinks (i.e. evidence should be shown in the document directly); verifiers may not manually download any additional documentation from such links.
Some questions do not apply to my entity. Can I dismiss certain questions?
If certain questions do not apply to your entity, you are able to select “Decline to answer” and provide additional information or explanation in the “Reasons for declining” box. None of the questions are mandatory and as such, you are able to reply to those for which you have relaible information. Nevertheless, we incentivize users to analyze these questions that are relevant to their entity’s activities but for which they do not have information currently, as they may indicate paths to improve sustainability.
Please note that the questionnaire you will see is customized based on your entity size and general sector ((services, industry, agriculture, commercial, real estate) for the PREMIUM Subscription, and industry standard (aligned to US-based Sustainable Industry Classification System, or SICS from SASB) to which your entity belongs for the PRO Subscription. SASB’s approach is to first categorize industries and sectors, and then use nuances of each industry to define the materiality of specific sustainability accounting criteria. This assessment of materiality is a key differentiator not offered by other reporting frameworks.
The options available in the questionnaire are mere recommendations of the best practices to address the material sustainability issues in your industry.
Can I change the ESG data of an already approved dataset?

After creating your ESG Dataset by filling out the questionnaire, it needs to be approved to proceed to ESG Reporting. Already approved ESG Datasets can be changed, but need to be clonned and approved again by an Approver.

How long does it take to fill in the ESG questionnaire?

The completion of your ESG Dataset will depend on your entity size, complxity and sustainability maturity level. It will also depend of the availability of all the requested information (including documents). It might take approximately from a few hours to a few days to complete and upload all required documents.

Do I need to prepare in any way before I start completing the questionnaire?
Taking a little bit of time to prepare to complete the questionnaire will make the process much faster. Here are a couple of things you may want to consider before you start: 
– Compile annual quantitative information; Sustanya requests annual information, so if you have monthly records, it will be good to aggregate annual data in advance;
– Gather your entity’s documentation: In addition to answering questions about themes covered by the assessment, i.e. Environment, Labor & Human Rights, Ethics and Sustainable Procurement, we will also ask you to provide documents to support your answers. Supporting evidence is a crucial part of the assessment for third party verification. Without it, verifiers cannot guarantee a verification report; and
– Involve your colleagues: you might need help from other departments, e.g. HR or Quality, as well as the top management. You can create usernames for other colleagues and invite them to participate in Sustanya;
Can people outside my entity see my ESG Data? 
No, only people that are part of your entity will see your ESG Data unless you grant special permission to external members (e.g. third-party Verifiers). If you’re an Admin you can manage Permissions and User Roles. To do so, navigate to the ‘Entity Settings’ tab on the right side of the header bar, then choose ‘Team Members’ section.
For further information on how we manage data, please refer to our Data Privacy Policy.

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