Sustainability Reporting in Local Government Authorities

This paper focuses on the awareness and usage of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Guidelines in undertaking sustainability reporting from a local government perspective. Design/Methodology/Approach A multi-method approach was employed to collect data utilizing both mail survey and interview techniques. Findings Findings indicate that there is limited knowledge and usage of the GRI reporting guidelines in the local government sector with a number of other reporting frameworks being utilized by local authorities in their sustainability reporting endeavours. This suggests that local government are starting to think seriously about how to report on sustainability and need specific direction and guidance in the further development of the sustainability reporting agenda. Research Limitations/Implications The paper enhances understanding of current sustainability reporting practices and the importance of providing guidance and direction within the public sector, with particular focus on local government. Originality/Value This is an exploratory study examining an area of accounting in local government which there are few others. It seeks to contribute to the literature by exploring and examining the awareness of reporting guidelines and their use in sustainability reporting in the local government sector in Australia.