Can you talk about you or your company’s efforts relating to renewability, sustainability or other environmentally- friendly activities?

In the agricultural sector, our sustainable green business strategy laid the foundation for development and gained us a competitive advantage, providing the market with green energy solutions from clean production. We have constantly been researching and focusing on investing in the circular economic value chain to optimize the value of produce, creating primary and secondary by-products. This minimises the waste of by-products during the production process. Our unique application of Trichogramma solutions prevents pests and diseases using natural enemies without leaving pesticide residues on agricultural products. These actions promote modern agriculture while protecting the surrounding environment. Continuous efforts are made to maximise revenue from investment projects to improve technical and technological development aimed to reduce costs and improve production capacity.

In the renewable energy business, TTC is determined to promote economic efficiency and strengthen national energy security. In 2022, the company’s board of directors agreed to advocate for the application of modern technology due to international standards. We have continued to meet the IFC’s standards for ESG and implement flexible and reasonable policies that improve income, compensation and benefits to maintain the quality of human resources. We aim to use local labour and prioritise the diversification of power sources. TTC also built a synchronous revenue ecosystem of various types of energy to reduce the effect of weather impacts.

Finally, TTC issued 69 regulatory documents on governance, three on control, and 273 on management for the sustainable development of the company, shareholders and stakeholders’ benefits.

Why are in-house lawyers well-placed to drive change in their organisations?

We are compelled to comply with new laws and emerging regulations. Policy changes on pricing and bidding mechanisms affect our investment decision and implementation. In-house lawyers also address demands from the media, investors, clients and employees to improve our ESG performance. We need to diligently review the accuracy of ESG statements to avoid costly allegations of greenwashing, consumer fraud claims, litigation, and regulatory violations.

The chief legal officer sits on the board and plays an important role in governance, ensuring the ethical operation of the company and accountability to stakeholders. The chief legal officer also defines the role of the governing body responsible for environmental and social performance, update codes of conduct and incorporate environmental and social considerations into the risk management framework.

In-house legal teams are also deeply involved in the risk management process. This requires cooperation from every department in the company to improve environmental and social performance and create a platform needed to discuss ESG issues.

It can be difficult to truly measure a company’s track record and accomplishments in terms of their environmentally friendly behaviour. What do you think has, until now, been mostly missed when discussing how green a company is?

It is not easy to reconcile economic and environmental concerns. An organisation is only sustainable if it improves economic, social, and environmental well-being.

We compare the rising costs of ESG compliance with positive financial returns and real sustainable benefits arising from going beyond mandatory legal and regulatory compliance. Complying with environmental law is usually not expected to yield a positive financial return.

Going beyond compliance in reducing pollution from industrial processes and increasing energy efficiency can benefit customers, shareholders and the environment. We help our customers install energy efficient solar rooftops and renewable lighting and cooling systems. This results in cost savings and environmental payoffs.

Due to the lack of a proper framework to address ESG challenges, people sometimes fail to embed environmental excellence in their business strategy and review it periodically. We also miss out on long-term innovative, creative solutions that address environmental challenges, and integrated, mutually supportive fiscal, economic, environmental, and industrial policies.

As the ESG sector grows, IT and cybersecurity energy-intensive activities will increase. Companies must be mindful of future cyber needs and upgrade IT infrastructure to accommodate modern safeguarding. Therefore, investing in environmentally friendly technology is one of the most effective ways a business can be more energy efficient. This can range from small changes such as LED lighting to large-scale systems like wind turbines, solar panels, or water conservation plans.