Sustainability Reporting

Apple ESG report follows the GRI framework which means that the Environment, Social, and Governance report follows content and quality guidelines. First, Apple's ESG report meets stakeholder inclusiveness by considering the interest and concerns of its stakeholders such as consumers, employees, suppliers, and investors. Furthermore, the company’s report also meets sustainable context as the report shows how Apple’s sustainability engagements relate to its organizational strategic context. Besides, the ESG report also meets materiality and completeness because Apple’s report shows the economic, environmental, and social impact of the company and also shows concern for its stakeholders and the importance of taking action. The quality guidelines that Apple’s ESG report meets are comparability, timeliness, and reliability mainly because the company’s report clearly states the changes made and future goals and the timeline frame in which to complete those goals. Furthermore, Apple’s report can be examined by external organizations to establish the quality and materiality of the information. Nevertheless, Apple’s ESG report does not meet balance, accuracy, and clarity as the report only shows the positive outcomes of the company, does not provide accurate and detailed data and is hard to read and comprehend. 

GRI Guidelines	Apple Explanation	Apple Evaluation Description
Content Guidelines
Stakeholder Inclusiveness	Met Apple’s report contains information on stakeholder engagement processes.	Apple considers the interests and concerns of several significant stakeholders. For instance, Apple focuses on developing the most excellent goods globally that are a positive factor in business customers' lives while also being committed to supporting their team members' development.
Sustainability Context	Met Apple has reported how its sustainability engagements relate to its organizational strategic context.	Apple’s sustainability engagement is to be carbon neutral by 2030. The Environmental Social Governance report does mention that Apple is dedicated to leaving the world in a better state for society. This entails assisting communities throughout the world with projects that address inequality and provide access to opportunity.
Completeness	Met Apple shows concern for its shareholders, stakeholders, and the importance of taking action.	Apple expresses that the future is unpredictable, but they would like to be prepared and contribute to at least lessen the future damage that has been done in the past.
Materiality	Met Apple’s report shows the economic, environmental, and social impacts of the company.	Apple wants to be carbon neutral throughout its environment and climate change footprint by 2030. In order to do so, Apple will cut emissions by 75 % while converting its product and packaging materials to recycled and renewable sources.
Quality Guidelines
Balance	Not Met Apple's report only shows positive outcomes for the company.	While stating all of its plans to help solve environmental and social issues within the company, there are very few “broad” statements where Apple takes accountability for its own mistakes.
Comparability	Met Apple states what changes have been made and how they will reach their future goals.	In their report, they speak on climate change and how their acts have performed successfully in the past. For example, they stated that they have decreased their carbon footprint by 40% since 2015, and continue to do so.
Accuracy	Not Met Apple’s report does not provide sufficient accurate and detailed data.	Apple’s information does not cover all of the business operations and the report reflects estimates and forward-looking statements that can differ from actual results.
Timeliness	Met Apple’s report has a timeline frame that relates to the report's information.	Apple’s report focuses its attention on the company fiscal year of 2020 unless “calendar year” is specified. Furthermore, Apple has been publishing environmental reports since 2012.
Clarity	Not Met Apple’s report is hard to read and comprehend.	Apple’s report provides indexes and sections organized with bullet points, bold letters, and margins highlighting important information; however, Apple’s report contains too much text, so it is hard to interpret and understand.
Reliability	Met Apple’s report can be examined to establish the quality and materiality of information.	Apple uses frameworks and standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the Sustainable Accounting Standards Board (SASB), and the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) to create the company’s ESG Index maps.

 

Some shadow reports have demonstrated that Apple is not as sustainable as it appears to be in its ESG report. First, an article by Business Insider has linked Apple to Chinese suppliers that use forced labor of Uyghur Muslims and other persecuted groups in the country. For its part, Apple replied that the company had zero tolerance for forced labor and that there was no evidence that its suppliers were using forced labor. Nevertheless, multiple external sources have found connections between Apple’s suppliers and forced Uyghur labor. Another article by Fee Stories has demonstrated that Apple’s Paper and Packaging Strategy document is dishonest. In that report Apple has stated that the company is replacing plastic with renewable materials; however, the article states that Apple is misleading information and that the company creates products that are impossible to upgrade to increase its profitability as consumers must buy new products yearly which increases consumerism. Finally, another shadow report by Apple Insider states that Apple is producing more waste than they have been in past years although the company has said in its ESG report that they are becoming more efficient in the handling of its waste. 

Source	Problem Stated	SDG Goal Violation
Business Insider Katie Canales	Apple’s suppliers could be linked to the forced labor of Uyghur Muslims and other persecuted groups in China.	SDG target 8.7 (Eradicate forced labor and end modern slavery) SDG target 8.8 (Protect labor rights and promote safe and secure working environments)
Fee Stories David L. Veksler	Apple’s document “Paper and Packaging Strategy,” says that they will remove several grams of paper and plastic from iPhone packaging. However, Apple's environmental message is dishonest, both in its overarching values and misleading in its use of green energy.	SDG target 12.2 (By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse) SDG target 12.6 (Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle)
Apple Insider Amber Neely	Apple is producing considerably more waste than they have been in past years. In fact, in 2012, Apple sent just over 4.8 million pounds of waste to landfills. By 2015, that number rose to over 13 million pounds. In 2018, Apple had sent 36.5 million pounds — or 18,250 tons — of waste to landfills.	SDG target 12.4 (Achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes through their life cycle and significantly reduce their release into the air, water, and soil to minimize their adverse impact) SDG target 12.5 (By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse indicators)