ACCOUNTING FOR SUSTAINABILITY: WHAT NEXT? A RESEARCH AGENDA

This working paper responds to increasing calls for more and different forms of accounting research involvement in accounting for sustainability. It seeks to provide background, clarify the accounting research issues, and suggest research methods. The background analysis indicates that accounting for sustainability must go beyond supplemental reporting of ecological and social information to include such emerging issues as integrated reporting of sustainability information along with financial reporting. Additional emerging issues are needs of users of sustainability reports, auditing and other assurance of sustainability information, and sustainability implications of financial failure, accounting and auditing failures, and lack of enforcement. Analysis of integrated reporting against traditional financial accounting theory concepts of the purpose of financial reporting and the postulates of going concern, reporting entity, monetary unit, and time period, indicates a need for substantial changes in the traditional financial accounting model if sustainability issues are to be integrated. The agenda concludes with five research issues and methods: - An accounting research framework for sustainability using general systems theory approaches that have been useful for similar emerging issues. - Reporting of sustainability information which has been the focus of most research to date, and the emerging important topic of integrated reporting. - Users of sustainable information, their uses and perceived needs, an area that has been largely neglected in research to date.- Auditing and assurance issues that are taking on greater importance as more users demand assurance for sustainability information. Issues include standards to be used and users expectations and reactions. - Financial distress and sustainability consequences of accounting and enforcement failures that are just now being recognized as sustainability issues.accounting for sustainability, integrated reporting, needs of users, audit, assurance

Measuring Pension Wealth

Pension wealth plays a critical role in older individuals’ retirement behavior and financial security. Accordingly, the magnitude and distribution of pension wealth is important in the ongoing debate about whether households, especially Baby Boomers, have saved adequately for retirement. This chapter summarizes the results of a long-term effort to develop an improved calculator to measure defined contribution pension wealth of older Americans. We implement the approach to construct alternative estimates of DC plan balances for Health and Retirement Study (HRS) participants. We find that pension wealth resulting from voluntary saving (and accrued earnings thereon) comprises half of DC pension wealth calculated for HRS respondents with matched summary plan descriptions. We also find lower mean estimates of DC pension wealth than prior estimates. Much of this reduction in estimated DC wealth occurs for the wealthiest tail of the pension-wealth distribution. Our findings imply that researchers must think more carefully about the economic assumptions underlying pension measures

Tricarboxylic acid cycle enzyme activities in a mouse model of methylmalonic aciduria

Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) is a propionate pathway disorder caused by dysfunction of the mitochondrial enzyme methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (MMUT). MMUT catalyzes the conversion of methylmalonyl-CoA to succinyl-CoA, an anaplerotic reaction which feeds into the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. As part of the pathological mechanisms of MMA, previous studies have suggested there is decreased TCA activity due to a toxic inhibition of TCA cycle enzymes by MMA related metabolites, in addition to reduced anaplerosis. Here, we have utilized mitochondria isolated from livers of a mouse model of MMA (Mut-ko/ki) and their littermate controls (Ki/wt) to examine the amounts and enzyme functions of most of the TCA cycle enzymes. We have performed mRNA quantification, protein semi-quantitation, and enzyme activity quantification for TCA cycle enzymes in these samples. Expression profiling showed increased mRNA levels of fumarate hydratase in the Mut-ko/ki samples, which by contrast had reduced protein levels as detected by immunoblot, while all other mRNA levels were unaltered. Immunoblotting also revealed decreased protein levels of 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase and malate dehydrogenase 2. Interesting, the decreased protein amount of 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase was reflected in decreased activity for this enzyme while there is a trend towards decreased activity of fumarate hydratase and malate dehydrogenase 2. Citrate synthase, isocitrate dehydrogenase 2/3, succinyl-CoA synthase, and succinate dehydrogenase are not statistically different in terms of quantity of enzyme or activity. Finally, we found decreased activity when examining the function of methylmalonyl-CoA mutase in series with succinate synthase and succinate dehydrogenase in the Mut-ko/ki mice compared to their littermate controls, as expected. This study demonstrates decreased activity of certain TCA cycle enzymes and by corollary decreased TCA cycle function, but it supports decreased protein quantity rather than toxic inhibition as the underlying mechanism of action. SUMMARY: Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) is an inborn metabolic disorder of propionate catabolism. In this disorder, toxic metabolites are considered to be the major pathogenic mechanism for acute and long-term complications. However, despite optimized therapies aimed at reducing metabolite levels, patients continue to suffer from late complications, including metabolic stroke and renal insufficiency. Since the propionate pathway feeds into the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, we investigated TCA cycle function in a constitutive MMA mouse model. We demonstrated decreased amounts of the TCA enzymes, Mdh2 and Ogdh as semi-quantified by immunoblot. Enzymatic activity of Ogdh is also decreased in the MMA mouse model compared to controls. Thus, when the enzyme amounts are decreased, we see the enzymatic activity also decreased to a similar extent for Ogdh. Further studies to elucidate the structural and/or functional links between the TCA cycle and propionate pathways might lead to new treatment approaches for MMA patients

High Amplitude Short Time Excitation: A Method to Form and Detect Low Mass Product Ions in a Quadrupole Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer

Collision induced dissociation (CID) in a quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer using the conventional 30 ms activation time is compared with high amplitude short time excitation (HASTE) CID using 2 ms and 1 ms activation times. As a result of the shorter activation times, dissociation of the parent ions using the HASTE CID technique requires resonance excitation voltages greater than conventional CID. After activation, the rf trapping voltage is lowered to allow product ions below the low mass cut-off to be trapped. The HASTE CID spectra are notably different from those obtained using conventional CID and can include product ions below the low mass cut-off for the parent ions of interest. The MS/MS efficiencies of HASTE CID are not significantly different when compared with the conventional 30 ms CID. Similar results were obtained with a two-dimensional (linear) ion trap and a three-dimensional ion trap

The Urgency of Now: Foundations’ Role in Ending Racial Inequity

· This article explores the multiple approaches that foundations can use to advance racial equity and prosperity. · It first gauges the depth of the challenge that our communities face in racial disparities, then surveys the evolution of the role of philanthropies in addressing poverty and traces the long history of racialization of institutions and systems. · Finally, this article focuses on a specific set of approaches used by the Minnesota-based Northwest Area Foundation that others working for racial equity might employ to meet their needs

Multidecadal variability of potential temperature, salinity, and transport in the eastern subpolar North Atlantic

The Extended Ellett Line (EEL) hydrographic section extends from Scotland to Iceland crossing the Rockall Trough, Hatton-Rockall Basin and Iceland Basin. With 61 full-depth stations at a horizontal resolution of 10 to 50 km, the EEL samples the upper limb of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation flowing across the Iceland-Scotland Ridge into the Nordic Seas. The Rockall Trough has been sampled nearly four times per year from 1975 to 1996, and the full section annually since 1996. The EEL is an exceptionally long timeseries of deep-ocean temperatures and salinities. This study extends prior work in the Rockall Trough, and examines for the first time 18 year records in the Iceland and Hatton-Rockall Basins. We quantify errors in the timeseries from two sources: observational errors and aliasing. The data quality and annual sampling are suitable for observing interannual to decadal variability because the variability exceeds our error estimates. The upper waters of all 3 basins are cooler/fresher from 1997 to 2001, warmer/more saline 2001 to 2006, and cooler/fresher from 2006 to 2014. A reference level for geostrophic shear is developed heuristically and by comparison with sea-surface altimetry. The mean northward transport in the upper waters is 6.7±3.7 Sv and there is a 6.1±2.5 Sv southward flow below the thermocline. Although the magnitude of the Iceland Basin overturning circulation (4.3±1.9 Sv) is greater than in the Rockall Trough (3.0±3.7 Sv), the variability is greater in the Rockall Trough. We discuss the results in the context of our understanding of drivers of variability