Cat’s Track #159 – Helle Bank Jorgensen

Welcome to Cat’s Track Episode 159, with guest Helle Bank Jorgensen.

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Helle Bank Jorgensen is one of the world’s most experienced and renowned sustainability, climate change, and ESG advisers with close to 30 years of experience helping global companies and investors. A business lawyer and state-authorized public accountant by training, Helle helps global companies and investors turn sustainability into strong financial results. She is a sought-after strategic, as well as operational, ESG adviser to boards, executives, and investors across the globe. In 2018 she founded Competent Boards, which offers the global online ESG Competent Boards Certificate Program, now with a faculty of over 85 global board members, executives, and experts. The program helps board members, executives, and advisors confidently identify, articulate, and act upon the most material environmental, social, and governance aspects of their business. The program has engaged several world-class business leaders like Paul Polman, former Unilever CEO, and current chair of the International Chamber of Commerce, who calls it an “Incredible initiative.” As an experienced board facilitator and board member, she serves on His Royal Highness Prince of Wales A4S Global Expert Panel, as well as the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Governance & Internal Oversight High-Level Advisory Group, and on the Global Advisory Council, Cornerstone Capital Group – an impact investing advisory firm serving clients who want their investments to contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive world. She is an expert Judge for the Global Responsible Business Awards by Ethical Corporations. She serves as a Canadian Climate Governance Expert for the Canada Climate Law Initiative, as well as on the board of the Danish Canadian Chamber of Commerce. She founded the Global Compact Network Canada, the Canadian Chapter of the UN Global Compact. She built it to become the leading business network for sustainable development in Canada by engaging and helping many Canadian leaders. In that role, she also served on W20 for Canada (Women 20 as part of G20), lead the Gender Equality Project, and joined the Federal Minister to present Canada’s SDG plan at the UN. She continues to support as the Founder and President Emeritus. Helle received the Clean50 award in 2018 for her work in building the Global Compact Network Canada. Before founding these organizations, Helle spent 19 years with PwC, hereof 11 years as a partner in Europe and the U.S., building and leading sustainability and climate change practices. Helle was the creator of the world’s first Green Account based on lifecycle assessment, as well as the world’s first Integrated Report, the first holistic supply chain program, and was the principal organizer for the CEO/Investor-network for Business Ethics and Non-Financial Reporting. She has led the CDP-report of the S&P 500, the Improvement of DJSI ranking and investor communication for global companies and has worked on Natural Capital Accounting for IFC/World Bank. In 2015, Helle became the first in North America to have received the Certificate of Achievement and passed the GRI G4 Exam. Helle has written numerous thought leader pieces, is a regular keynote speaker, and is often interviewed by global media outlets. Until recently, she was the Chair of Datamaran, a UK based technology startup, and she has served on the Finance and Audit Committee of International IDEA (International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance), the board of European Policy Centre (EPC), as Chair of European Sustainability Reporting Association (ESRA), the Board of CSR Europe, Board of American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), the Sustainability Advisory Panel of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Sustainability Policy Group of Institute of European Accountants (FEE), as an International associate of the Centre for Social and Environmental Accounting Research (CSEAR), and as a member of the Council for International Development Cooperation (DANIDA). She is also a Board Facilitator for the UN Global Compact Board Program.