eBooks & Guides

01 — Corporations New to Reporting CHOOSING THE RIGHT FRAMEWORK Consider the following essential frameworks: GRI, SASB, and TCFD. Both TCFD and SASB are frameworks being used as foundations for consolidated ESG disclosure initiatives around the world, suggesting that disclosing to each of these frameworks now is also a way to help ensure your firm is prepared for future ESG requirements. Firms newer to disclosure must start reporting on honest progress via standardized mechanisms such as GRI or TCFD as soon as possible. Even if no progress has been made, report on why this is the case and how it will be addressed. Reporting continuously, even with unfavorable metrics or status reports is a key test of transparency and trust in the midst of a greenwashing crisis. Omitting information or forgoing a follow-up ESG report in the years following the initial report leaves firms vulnerable to unsavory media exposure of their failure to maintain ESG efforts. 02 — Experienced Reporters Continuously improve your reporting process by identifying gaps, refining data collection methods, and incorporating feedback from stakeholders. It is also crucial to stay informed about upcoming changes and new standards as sustainability reporting is becoming increasingly regulated. Stay in the know about regional and national regulations that may affect your reporting obligations, such as the European Union's new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) guidelines. Look to TCFD and GRI for guidance on what will be included in ISSB, in addition to reporting on SASB standards as a way to prepare. CFOs, chief risk officers, chief sustainability officers, and others can familiarize themselves with and take steps to align with the initial ISSB Sustainability Disclosure Standards, S1, and S2, which will become effective in January 2024. Adopting those standards can help navigate complex ESG regulatory developments across multiple jurisdictions, including the proposed SEC climate disclosure requirements. ISSB provides an effective framework to help companies perform their materiality analysis. As part of that exercise, management should use the SASB Materiality Finder for guidance on the material issues particular to their industry. It is also important to look into assurance as certain mandates and ISSB may start requiring 3rd party assurance in 2024 or 2025. U.S. companies should rapidly gain an understanding of the broad implications of E.U. regulation, too, because many will be impacted by it, whether through their E.U. operations or through disclosure demands from customers or investors impacted by the regulation. Sustainability & Energy Management Simplified

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