IEMA to drive the future of global sustainability body

3rd March 2014


Related Topics

Related tags

  • CPD ,
  • Skills ,
  • Knowledge Centre

Author

Claudius Thomas Voelker

IEMA confirms it is set to acquire the Global Association of Corporate Sustainability Officers (GACSO)

Taking the lead from its members’ ambition that it widens its focus to include a global perspective on sustainability, the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA) has announced today (3 March 2014) that it is to acquire GACSO.

GACSO is a community of corporate professionals who “live and breathe sustainable development”. The founding group of GACSO members has been seeking to bond with an established environmental body to provide necessary resource, traction and drive to stimulate its membership growth and influence.

The founders have been impressed by the strength of IEMA’s membership and its “passion and enthusiasm”. As a result, IEMA will take over the operation and development of GACSO from April 2014.

IEMA will incorporate GACSO's membership, which includes individuals working in sustainability roles for some of the world’s best-known brands such as Coca Cola, KPMG and HSBC, into its existing membership of 15,100.

Speaking about the growth of the IEMA group, its chief executive Tim Balcon, said: “This is a really important and exciting move, both for IEMA and GACSO members, who will soon be a united force. IEMA will prove to be a natural home for those working at the strategic end of sustainability and I guarantee that it will enhance IEMA’s network of senior professionals."

GACSO co-founder Dr Alan Knight, said: “Our board are unanimous in their view that IEMA can and will offer the best mix of preserving the identity and ‘one world’ ethos of GACSO, the strong knowledge-sharing heritage we have developed, while allowing for the most rapid evolution to a professional membership model for corporate sustainability practitioners”.

In response to Knight’s acknowledgement of IEMA’s dedication, Balcon said: “I’d like to thank the team at GACSO who have dedicated their time and energy into establishing this genuinely pioneering community, and for their enthusiasm about GACSO’s future under IEMA’s leadership.

"I see massive potential for the future of GACSO as a membership and as a brand, and I guarantee that it will benefit from being powered by IEMA at a time when organisations around the globe are finally switching on to the intrinsic value of environment and sustainability professionals.”

Subscribe

Subscribe to IEMA's newsletters to receive timely articles, expert opinions, event announcements, and much more, directly in your inbox.


Transform articles

Taking the lead

To make real change on sustainability, it’s time to redefine leadership models, writes Chris Seekings

1st February 2024

Read more

Caris Graham (she/her) is Diverse Sustainability Initiative officer at IEMA

1st February 2024

Read more

Lisa Pool reflects on the highlights of the past year and what they mean for the future

1st February 2024

Read more

The percentage of women working in the built environment sector rose significantly last year although people from ethnic minorities find it up to six times harder to be recruited, according to a major survey.

17th January 2024

Read more

IEMA’s CEO and deputy CEO, Sarah Mukherjee MBE and Martin Baxter, respectively, called for greater support for green skills at several events today on Youth, Children, Education and Skills Day at COP28.

8th December 2023

Read more

A look at the latest edition of Stephen Asbury’s IEMA-endorsed book, Health and Safety, Environment and Quality Audits, and the CPD opportunities it presents

28th November 2023

Read more

Media enquires

Looking for an expert to speak at an event or comment on an item in the news?

Find an expert

IEMA Cookie Notice

Clicking the ‘Accept all’ button means you are accepting analytics and third-party cookies. Our website uses necessary cookies which are required in order to make our website work. In addition to these, we use analytics and third-party cookies to optimise site functionality and give you the best possible experience. To control which cookies are set, click ‘Settings’. To learn more about cookies, how we use them on our website and how to change your cookie settings please view our cookie policy.

Manage cookie settings

Our use of cookies

You can learn more detailed information in our cookie policy.

Some cookies are essential, but non-essential cookies help us to improve the experience on our site by providing insights into how the site is being used. To maintain privacy management, this relies on cookie identifiers. Resetting or deleting your browser cookies will reset these preferences.

Essential cookies

These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website.

Analytics cookies

These cookies allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors to our website and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works.

Advertising cookies

These cookies allow us to tailor advertising to you based on your interests. If you do not accept these cookies, you will still see adverts, but these will be more generic.

Save and close