The state of disclosures on stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting in Australian local councils

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the state and extent of disclosures on stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting in Australian local councils.

Design/methodology/approach

Content analysis was used to analyse 23 sustainability/state of environment/annual reports out of a total of 563 local councils (city, shire, district, borough and regional) in Australia for the year 2009-2010 – those found to be using stakeholder engagement in the development of sustainability reports. A stakeholder engagement index was developed on the basis of the literature review to examine the extent of disclosures on stakeholder engagement.

Findings

This study identifies: the Australian local councils that are engaging with their stakeholders in the development of sustainability reports; key stakeholders for sustainability reports; extent of engagement; media and approaches used for engagement; and difficulties in the engagement process. The results suggest that stakeholder engagement is an essential component in the development of sustainability reporting as it informs reporters of material concerns, issues and aspirations of key stakeholders.

Research limitations/implications

The focus of this paper is the state of disclosures on stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting. The findings of the paper are limited to only one level of governance of the public sector, that is, local councils.

Originality/value

International standards such as Global Reporting Initiative and AccountAbility (AA) 1000 have signified the role of stakeholder engagement in the development of sustainability reports. However, there has been a little research that demonstrates whether or not organisations engage with their stakeholders for reporting purposes. This paper provides evidence of stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting in Australian local councils.

Citation

Kaur, A. and K. Lodhia, S. (2014), "The state of disclosures on stakeholder engagement in sustainability reporting in Australian local councils", Pacific Accounting Review, Vol. 26 No. 1/2, pp. 54-74. https://doi.org/10.1108/PAR-07-2013-0064