Inventory of national and regional developments on climate change-related disclosure

Environmental reporting has been a subject of work for ISAR for a number of years. The Group of Experts addressed this subject, for example, in the publication Accounting and Financial Reporting for Environmental Costs and Liabilities (1999) and in A Manual for the Preparers and Users of Eco-efficiency Indicators (2003). Since ISAR began its work in this area, environmental reporting (and especially disclosure on climate change related emissions) has become increasingly important. At UNCTAD XII, United Nations Member States called on UNCTAD, through ISAR, to continue to contribute to the field of environmental reporting with a view to promoting a harmonized approach among Member States. Among the range of environmental issues that companies and communities face, reducing climate-change related emissions has been identified by United Nations Member States as a particularly urgent goal. As countries continue to work towards a new international agreement on climate change, corporate reporting on this subject remains important. The implementation of various policy options to curb climate change emissions will benefit from, or require, high quality reporting practices.

Related Subject(s): International Trade and Finance