Key Sustainability Reporting Frameworks

Here are some of the most popular sustainability reporting frameworks, who they impact and what they measure.

1. Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB)
   • Overview: A benchmark for ESG performance in real estate, assessing portfolios globally.
   • Metrics: Energy consumption, GHG emissions, water usage, waste management, social responsibility.
   • Scoring: 0-100 scale, with scores divided into Management, Performance, and Development components.
2. Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR)
   • Overview: EU regulation enhancing transparency in sustainable investments to combat greenwashing.
   • Who Reports: Financial institutions in the EU.
   • Metrics: Principal Adverse Impacts (PAIs), sustainability risks, promotion of ESG characteristics.
3. EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
   • Overview: Mandates sustainability reporting for large European companies to enhance corporate transparency.
   • Who Reports: Large EU companies, those with turnover above €150 million.
   • Metrics: ESG factors, climate change impact, board diversity, supply chain due diligence.
4. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) S1 and S2
   • Overview: Global standards integrating sustainability with financial reporting, focusing on general and climate-specific disclosures.
   • Who Reports: Any company can use these standards.
   • Metrics: General sustainability disclosures, climate-related disclosures.
5. U.S. SEC Climate Disclosure Rule
   • Overview: Mandates climate-related disclosures in SEC filings to enhance transparency on climate impacts.
   • Who Reports: SEC-registered companies.
   • Metrics: Climate-related risks, GHG emissions (Scope 1 and 2), climate-related financial metrics.
6. UK Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (UK SDR)
   • Overview: UK regulation for transparency in sustainable investments, with specific sustainability labels.
   • Who Reports: UK companies, banks, insurers, asset managers.
   • Metrics: ESG impacts including climate change, waste, social factors, governance.
7. Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
   • Overview: Comprehensive framework for reporting across all ESG dimensions, recognized by the UN Global Compact.
   • Who Reports: All organizations.
   • Metrics: Economic, environmental, and social metrics.
8. Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
   • Overview: Focuses on environmental transparency, particularly climate change and emissions.
   • Who Reports: Companies, cities, states, regions.
   • Metrics: Climate change data, GHG emissions, water security, forest risks.
9. Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) and S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA)
   • Overview: Evaluates and ranks publicly listed companies based on ESG performance.
   • Who Reports: Publicly listed companies.
   • Metrics: ESG performance criteria.