Baxter

I. Introduction

In a time where being “green” is becoming less chic and more vital to survival, members of the corporate world are finding it just as essential to be as environmentally and socially responsible as it is to be fiscally sound. This idea, referred to as a having a triple-bottom line, implies that maximizing shareholder wealth is only a fraction of what is to be expected from a company and that they must put just as much time and effort into decreasing their negative impacts on the environment and society as they do into increasing profits.

One company that epitomizes how today’s corporate sector should approach this issue of having three bottom lines is the global healthcare corporation, Baxter International. (BRIEF COMPANY PROFILE) Every year Baxter publishes perhaps the most extensive, in- depth and revealing Sustainability Report of any corporation in the world and while they may not have the smallest carbon footprint or donate the most money to developing nations, Baxter prides itself on it’s incredible transparency in revealing it’s progress, or lack thereof, to becoming more sustainable.

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II. Report Content

Materiality

As stated by the GRI, materiality for sustainability reporting is whether or not the threshold that determines if a topic has significant impact on any of the three components of the triple bottom line has been crossed. This means that materiality is not simply applied to those topics involving financial significance but that it includes those material topics that have environmental and social significance. Throughout it’s sustainability report Baxter demonstrates an excellent understanding of the significance of their triple bottom line and, in regards to product responsibility, include an array of material topics from both environmental and social standpoints. From illustrating how they have been reducing different types of harmful chemicals, pursuing water and energy reduction and improving product...