The company's main environmental, social, and governance initiatives are included in Thomson Reuters' 2021 Social Impact and ESG Report, which was released today. The research was made public soon after the company's mission statement, Inform the Way Forward, was introduced earlier this year.

“Our purpose expresses the role we play for professionals and the institutions we serve. It also anchors our ESG efforts, uniting our commercial and societal responsibilities: to increase knowledge, to act with courage and integrity, and to pursue justice, truth, and transparency. This is central to everything we do as a company, embedded in our products and reinforced through our partnerships and our people,”

said Steve Hasker, President and CEO of Thomson Reuters.

The 2021 report expands external reporting on the company’s diversity and inclusion efforts with disaggregated data on racial and ethnic representation and, where available, additional talent representation data. This builds on the company’s commitment to transparency, as Thomson Reuters continues to focus on increasing representation of women and racial and ethnically diverse talent in senior leadership roles.

At the end of 2021, women comprised 41% of senior leaders and 16% of senior leaders were racially or ethnically diverse. The company’s goals are to reach 45% or more women and 20% or more racial and ethnic representation in senior roles by the end of 2022, including a doubling of Black representation from 2020 levels. Last year, Black representation in senior leadership increased by 15%.

“Fostering a diverse and inclusive culture of world-class talent is one of our top global priorities, and transparency is integral to that work,”

said Hasker. “While we have made some progress, there is still more work to be done.”

The report also highlights that Thomson Reuters is in the process of completing a comprehensive global ESG materiality assessment, and the company has aligned with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs).

Additionally, for the first time, the company is reporting progress on all its commitments as a member of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to reduce absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to prioritize working with suppliers aligned with the Science Based Targets. Thomson Reuters has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner.

Largely through investment in renewable power for its facilities, the company has already exceeded its target to reduce absolute Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions by 50% by 2030 from 2018 baseline levels – reducing GHG emissions from its direct and indirect operations by over 93%, the equivalent of removing approximately 20,400 passenger vehicles from the road annually. Thomson Reuters is also making clear progress on its target to reduce Scope 3 emissions from business travel, employee commuting, and fuel and energy-related activities by 25% by 2025 from 2019 baseline levels.

Twenty-seven percent of the company’s suppliers by spend are committed to Science Based Targets, as Thomson Reuters continues to refine its procurement process to work with more suppliers that share its commitment to sustainability. The company is targeting 65% of its suppliers by spend to have Science Based Targets by 2025.

Other highlights in the report include:

Continued to combat misinformation by providing crucial access to trusted content and data, including the expansion of the Reuters Fact Check unit to review Spanish-language content from Facebook and Instagram in Mexico, and the launch of a partnership with Twitter to provide users of the platform with credible information to make informed decisions. 

Partnered with Equality Now to publish the breakthrough report Ending Online Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Women and Girls: A Call for International Standards, drawing on legal and editorial expertise of Thomson Reuters Practical Law attorney-editors, who contributed hundreds of hours of pro bono work.

Supported the Thomson Reuters Foundation’s TrustLaw, the world’s largest pro bono legal network – enabling nearly $20 million worth of free legal assistance globally in 2021 for non-governmental organizations and social enterprises.

Used 100% renewable energy for all global operations for the second year and will continue going forward.

The full report is available at tr.com/social-impact-report.

Source: Thomson reuters press release