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Sustainability Standards
This page provides a variety of sustainability standards, reporting instruments, and frameworks for measuring and reporting on factors related to sustainability in business environments.
U.S. companies have historically operated without formal regulatory structures or reporting requirements for sustainability-related information. On March 6, 2024, the SEC voted to adopt rules that require publicly-traded companies to include climate risk disclosures in some SEC filings, such as annual reports and registration statements, beginning with annual reports for the year ending December 31, 2025. Learn more here.
Standards, Frameworks, and Guidelines
Methods of measuring, quantifying, and reporting about sustainability are diverse and use a variety of frameworks, standards, and protocols. This section lists widely-adopted standards and frameworks, including the United States SEC financial reporting rules for climate-related risks established in March 2024.
- Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) StandardsGRI is an independent, international organization that develops universal and sector-specific standards for reporting on impacts to the economy, environment, and people.
- Greenhouse Gas ProtocolThe GHG Protocol is the framework for world's most widely used greenhouse gas accounting standards.
- IFRS Sustainability Disclosure StandardsAlso known as ISSB Standards; a set of requirements for a company to disclose information about its sustainability‑related risks and opportunities in its general purpose financial reports.
- ISO 26000An ISO guidance standard providing communication protocols and recommendations for social responsibility in business operations.
- OECD Guidelines for Multinational EnterprisesComprehensive international standard on Responsible Business Conduct (RBC), with guidelines for social, economic, and environmental responsibility.
- SASB StandardsIndustry-based standards for reporting on sustainability factors that affect cash flows, access to finance and cost of capital.
- Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)Disclosure recommendations and guidance for assessing and reporting climate-related financial risks.
- U.S. SEC Climate-Related DisclosuresIn 2025, the SEC will require public companies to provide climate-related disclosures in their annual reports. Details are available in documents linked to this page.
Related Reading
Measuring Sustainability and CSR: From Reporting to Decision-Making by ISBN: 9783031269592Publication Date: 2023
