(CSRwire) WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Global Environmental Management Initiative (GEMI) released a new tool that is the latest in a series of GEMI tools showing how environmental, health and safety (EHS) excellence can enhance the business performance of companies. Transparency: A Path to Public Trust has been designed to provide approaches that a company may consider as it addresses transparency- related challenges and opportunities. It consists of a five-step process designed to assist in the identification of transparency-related opportunities and risks, determining the business case for action, and engaging your organization in developing and implementing an effective transparency strategy.

“GEMI is very pleased to announce the release today of Transparency: A Path to Public Trust ,” said Elizabeth Girardi Schoen, Senior Director, Environmental Affairs, Corporate, Environment, Health & Safety, Pfizer Inc and Chair of GEMI. “This new tool and the case studies included in it are the result of a collaborative effort among the GEMI membership and leadership from the Work Group’s Co-Chairs Robert (Robin) Tollett, HSE Program Manager, The Procter & Gamble Company and Leslie Montgomery, Environmental Stewardship Program Manager, Southern Company, with the support of Melissa Spear, Jim Dray and Patricia Budd of RETEC and Pogo Davis, consultant,” she continued.

Co-Chair of the Work Group that developed Transparency: A Path to Public Trust ,Robin Tollett, stated, “This new tool describes the process by which information about how an organization operates and performs is delivered to stakeholders. The degree of openness of an organization is a function of its underlying corporate culture and commitment to [l1] HSE and excellence, as well as the level of trust that exists with its stakeholders.”

“The intent of this tool is to help EHS professionals and their companies design an approach to transparency that can be considered in order to create value by building sustainable, productive relationships with key stakeholders based on [l2] credibility, integrity, and trust,” said GEMI’s Transparency Work Group Co-Chair, Leslie Montgomery. “GEMI anticipates that Transparency: A Path to Public Trust has been designed as a guide to developing and enhancing [l3] relations with stakeholders and creating business value,” she concluded.

This new GEMI tool is intended for a broad audience, including: investors; customers; employees; neighbors; interested NGOs; and stakeholders.

For more information about GEMI and a free copy of this tool please visit GEMI’s web site at www.gemi.org.

What is RSS?