The chair of the organization in charge of overseeing Canada’s adoption of international sustainability reporting standards has stepped down, prompting a search for a replacement at a key time in its duties.
Charles-Antoine St-Jean was the inaugural chair of the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB), having signed on to the role in April, 2023. In a statement, the board did not give specifics behind the departure, saying only that “this decision reflects his personal priorities.” It thanked Mr. St-Jean for his leadership in the board’s development.
CSSB director Bruce Marchand will serve as interim chair while the board searches for a permanent replacement, the group said.
The CSSB is in the process of tailoring the first set of international corporate standards for sustainability reporting to the Canadian economy. They include proposals for requiring publicly traded companies to disclose greenhouse gas emissions and other sustainability-related data alongside financial reports.
The board recently concluded a call for feedback about its proposals, and is now in the process of studying the 169 submissions before finalizing its standards. The feedback showed a stark divide between investors such as pension funds and asset managers demanding detailed comparable data, and companies and industry associations that complained some factors are still too uncertain and implementation too burdensome.