A week after the announcement that Montreal would be one of the cities hosting the ISSB, thanks to the work of Montreal International in particular, its CEO on Wednesday detailed the efforts made by the business, political and academic community to house the organization.
First there will be Frankfurt, but also Montreal. During a speech organized by the Council of International Relations of Montreal (CORIM) on Wednesday, Stéphane Paquet, CEO of Montreal International, maintained that it is in particular the involvement of many actors from several backgrounds that has enabled Montreal to ” be chosen by the IFRS Foundation (International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation) to host – in the absence of the head office – one of the main offices of the ISSB (International Sustainability Standards Board), a new international organization responsible for establishing environmental standards for businesses globally.
“Montreal International is used to bringing together many players,” he said. But in six years, I have never worked on a file that has generated so much enthusiasm from all walks of life. Quickly, we felt that the Quebec ecosystem was behind us. ”
Montréal International submitted its application with Finance Montréal in August, focusing mainly on two arguments: Montréal, city of sustainable finance and international organizations. “Other major financial centers have shown some interest in hosting the ISSB, such as London, Beijing and Geneva,” says Stéphane Paquet.
At the conference, the CEO appointed several leaders of large companies who took action, in addition to Mayor Valérie Plante, the Quebec government and elected federal officials, environmental organizations and universities. “Everyone responded,” says Paquet. We also turned to Ghislain Picard, Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador, who quickly gave us his support. About twenty rectors, chancellors and directors general have expressed not only their support, but also their intention to collaborate with the ISSB if it settles in Montreal. “
“We had rational, factual and financial arguments, but this desire to work together to ensure that the arrival of the ISSB in Montreal would be a success worked in our favor, I am sure,” continues Stéphane Paquet.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, ARCHIVES THE PRESS
Stéphane Paquet, CEO of Montréal International
As with ICAO in civil aviation, it is in Montreal that global ESG disclosure standards will also be developed. [critères environnementaux, sociaux et de gouvernance].
Stéphane Paquet, CEO of Montréal International
In a desire to create sustainable wealth, Montreal International was already raising awareness of its foreign investment canvassers. “This fall, we created a special team to further green the economy of Greater Montreal, dedicated to clean technologies with funds from the Government of Canada,” said Stéphane Paquet. For two years now, our performance management system has encouraged our direct sellers to attract companies that stand out for their high standards in terms of social and environmental responsibility.
“We see it with data center projects that choose Greater Montreal to reduce their carbon footprint. We can also see it with AspenTechs who develop software optimized by artificial intelligence to help the industrial sector reduce its impact on the environment. ”
Does this mean that the aerospace, artificial intelligence and video game sectors will be less in the sights of Montreal International from now on? “No, the social and environmental responsibility criteria are an addition,” Stéphane Paquet replied later to Press. It doesn’t erase everything else. We are aware that this is gaining importance among the financial community. The green aspect is transversal. It can apply to several sectors. ”
Montreal International considers Montreal very attractive despite the glaring labor shortage in the province. The organization nevertheless recalls that it offers services to facilitate immigration. “We are working hard to grow the pool of skilled workers,” says Stéphane Paquet.
“That said, the situation in Greater Montreal is different from that of the rest of Quebec: for every 100 people who leave their jobs, 101 enter the labor market. There are several employment situations in the province. ”