A PDF version of this publication is attached here: Navigating the ESG landscape

After years of increasingly vocal demand for enhanced transparency about ESG matters from investors and other stakeholders, regulators and standard setters in various jurisdictions issued definitive proposals to transform ESG reporting in 2022. The year brought proposed ESG disclosures from the European Union (EU) as part of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), internationally by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), and in the United States (US) by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These “big three” proposals would each require expansive sustainability disclosures — although their proposed scopes and other details vary. All three proposals were subject to public comment periods that have now closed, although spring of 2023 will bring additional opportunity to comment on the EU proposed standards.

Given the geographic reach of the proposals and their potential to encompass a broad spectrum of value chain contributors, most companies are expected to be impacted in some way. Proactive companies are in the process of assessing the scope and applicability of the proposals so that the appropriate planning can begin now. An SEC registrant that has a subsidiary listed in the EU and a subsidiary in a jurisdiction that requires ISSB reporting, for example, may be subject to the requirements in all three proposals. With equivalency — that is, whether disclosures for one reporting framework can satisfy some or all of the requirements of another — not yet determined, companies captured in multiple reporting regimes have a vested interest in understanding which reporting applies. Further, understanding where the frameworks align and diverge will help companies develop the requisite reporting strategy, data gathering processes, and related controls, providing for a streamlined process and effective deployment of resources.

This publication compares and contrasts key provisions among the three proposals. We offer our perspectives on the proposals, including some of the suggestions we have made to each regulator or standard setter to enhance operability. By understanding the requirements of the different proposals, preparers can develop the appropriate reporting strategy, one designed to capture the right data the first time.