Sustainability Report
IntermediateA sustainability report is a report published by a company describing its environmental, social and governance performance and impacts, such as its carbon emissions, use of resources, treatment of employees and community activities.
Sustainability reports, also called ESG reports or corporate responsibility reports, give investors, customers, employees and other stakeholders information about how a company manages issues beyond financial performance.
They typically cover greenhouse gas emissions, energy and water use, waste, workforce diversity, health and safety, human rights in supply chains, community engagement and governance practices, often with targets and progress over time.
For example, a retailer’s sustainability report might disclose its total emissions, its target to reach net zero, the share of its products sourced responsibly and the gender balance of its leadership.
Sustainability reporting has moved from mostly voluntary to increasingly required. Frameworks and standards include the Global Reporting Initiative, the ISSB Standards and, in the European Union, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, whose scope has been reduced. Concerns about greenwashing have increased demands for consistent, comparable and independently assured information.
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