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Financial comparability and environmental diversity: an international context
Author(s) -
Edwards Pamela,
Birkin Frank K.,
Woodward David G.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
business strategy and the environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.123
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1099-0836
pISSN - 0964-4733
DOI - 10.1002/bse.342
Subject(s) - comparability , accounting , credibility , stakeholder , business , context (archaeology) , shareholder , environmental accounting , environmental full cost accounting , diversity (politics) , management accounting , order (exchange) , accounting information system , integrated reporting , financial accounting , environmental resource management , economics , finance , throughput accounting , corporate governance , sustainability , management , sociology , political science , mathematics , anthropology , law , ecology , biology , paleontology , combinatorics
Accounting and environmental management both hold improved resource‐use efficiency as an ultimate goal, but intermediate processes and objectives vary and consequently it is separately assessed within each discipline. This paper intends to make visible the globalizing trends in accounting practice, which aim to standardize financial reporting to produce comparable information so that shareholders can maximize their economic wealth. This paper seeks to contrast this comparability strategy with the apparent need for diversity in accounting information exhibited by actual accounting practices, the information needs of environmental management and, ultimately, the cultural needs of sustainable development. We argue that a more pluralistic model, that enables a holistic assessment of corporate performance and balances diverse stakeholder objectives, is better suited to an uncertain future. Implementation requires accountants and environmental managers jointly to create and test a new order of reporting. There are many practical challenges but most significantly accountants and environmental managers must combine to enhance the visibility and credibility of these diverse performance measures. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment