What’s the difference between ESG reporting standards and frameworks?

Quite simply: there’s just a lot of information; how are you supposed to know where to start? 

This quick guide will give an overview of common standards and frameworks and their differences. 

To learn more about it, consider taking an ESG qualification with the Corporate Governance Institute. More info here. 

They are sets of guiding principles for the crucial topic of ESG reporting. 

ESG reporting is the heart of the movement because it’s how organisations communicate their progress in environmental, social or governance issues to stakeholders, particularly investors. 

If organisations can’t communicate this progress, any ESG-related work – no matter how strong – will not translate to verifiable results.

They’re necessary because companies can’t just report on ESG in any way they choose. They need to do so in a way that makes sense and has context. Standards and frameworks address this need. 

The persistent problem is that we don’t yet have a universal ESG reporting standard or framework that’s used worldwide. 

Because of that, industries have fallen back towards several widely-used standards as a substitute.

Specificity. 

• ESG reporting frameworks are more about principles. This focus on the bigger questions, such as how information is structured, what information is collected, etc.  
• ESG reporting standards are more technical. They give specific requirements, like precise metrics for reporting each topic. 

Remember that standards and frameworks should be used together. The former gives context and quantifiable objectives to the latter. 

Ultimately, the combination ensures that if you look at reports from multiple organisations side by side, they will make sense as individual documents and when compared against each other.

1. The Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework. As the name suggests, it focuses on climate – or the “E” component of ESG. 
2. The International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) framework – developed to promote integration across all kinds of ESG reporting. 
3. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework is a “catch-all” framework that tries to broadly capture multiple corners of ESG. 
4. The Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) framework. Again, this focuses on the “E” in ESG and aims to standardise information connected to climate change.

1. The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) standards. EFRAG was established by the European Commission and is closely tied to that body’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), passed in 2021. The standards focus on sustainability and financial matters. 
2. The IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards, spearheaded by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). These standards aim to streamline accounting reporting globally, increasing transparency in financial markets. 
3. The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) standards. These focus on all three pillars of ESG and are closely connected with the IFRS standards above.

ESG reporting frameworks provide guiding principles for ESG reporting, while standards give the tools to follow through on those principles. 

Both are important, and both should be used in tandem for full ESG transparency.