Recently, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) hosted their second annual International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Sustainability Symposium in New York City.
The 2024 IFRS Sustainability Symposium saw a gathering of not only investors, corporations and their advisors, but also dozens of regulators and policymakers from around the world. This year’s edition was designed to be a gathering focused on experiences, highlighting practical takeaways and insights regarding the landscape of sustainability-related financial disclosures, and how ISSB is central to that future.
Broadly speaking, the IFRS launched ISSB in order to get all stakeholders speaking the same baseline “language” of reporting for sustainability with alignment across all jurisdictions.
To that end, ISSB was designed to be aligned and easily integrated with existing disclosures such as the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB). As of October 2023, the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) fully disbanded and asked the IFRS foundation to take over the monitoring of the progress of companies’ climate-related disclosures. These are just the first steps in ending the alphabet soup of sustainability disclosures and migrating sustainability/ESG disclosures all under one “umbrella” for financial market considerations.
Another key point of emphasis at the symposium was how ISSB is meant to enable investing in sustainability and make the process more transparent and beneficial to all parties. Currently, a large portion of data and KPIs for sustainability and climate-related risks are historical and lack context; disclosures on things like emissions or energy usage are backwards-facing without highlighting corporate strategies and goals moving forward.
While these KPIs will still be included in ISSB reporting, these standards will not only ask for disclosures of forward-looking risks, but forward-looking sustainability and climate-related opportunities as well. Investors in capital markets are specifically looking at these considerations when making decisions and the full breadth of information covered in ISSB will hopefully enable more informed decision making in capital markets.
These considerations have led to ISSB being endorsed by the International Organization of Securities Commissions and adopted across multiple jurisdictions worldwide. Alongside the recent decision by the SEC to enforce climate-related disclosures, it is not a matter of if, but when IFRS’ disclosures start to become enforced in both domestic and international markets.
Subscribe To Our Blog Newsletter
Keep yourself ahead of the curve with the latest utility news, trends, & resources.
Editor's Picks
Multifamily Housing Trends
Real estate is always evolving due to the needs of the market and the creation and integration of new technologies. One specific trend is the growing demand for multifamily homes built to rent, especially among millennials. Multi-family trends will continue…
Read More
ENERGY STAR NextGen Certification: What’s New & How Conservice Can Help
The wait is over—well, almost! The EPA has officially announced the launch of ENERGY STAR NextGen certification, a new tier designed to recognize the nation’s most energy-efficient, low-emissions buildings. Applications open on February 24, 2025, giving properties just a few months to prepare for…
Read More
Your BPS Blueprint: A Guide to Emerging Building Performance Standards
You hear “greenhouse gas emissions” and you think…what? “Cars,” certainly. “Industry,” probably. “Agriculture” generally, and “cows” tragically. It might surprise you, then, to find out that a major portion of our nation’s contributions to global greenhouse gas emissions come from…
Read More
Winning the Big Utilities Game
The Big Game fervor is mounting across America. Fans make meticulous plans for their game-day feasts – wings, nachos, or perhaps a mix of both – and don colors to root for their favorite team. Living rooms turn into arenas,…
Read More
Why Vacant Cost Recovery is Important
Communities often bill their residents for various utility charges like water, sewer, and trash. However, there are two utilities that residents are typically required to set up in their own name with the local utility provider: electric and gas. What…
Read More
What’s the Importance of Sustainability for Multifamily
It doesn’t take a keen eye to see that the focus on sustainability is growing increasingly more relevant every day. You could even say the green initiative has moved in, unpacked its bags, and is here to stay. You hear…
Read More
What is ESG? Understanding the Acronym
So what is ESG (Environment, Social, Governance)? And why should property managers and owners invest in long-term ESG strategies? Cole Courson breaks down how ESG metrics provide insight into everything from environmental responsibility and community impact to corporate governance practices,…
Read More
Utility Rate Audits: Because Assumptions Aren’t a Strategy
Making assumptions about massive amounts of cumulative dollars year-over-year is never a good idea. Yet every year, real estate owners all over the country are making the costly assumption that their utility rates are fair, accurate, and as low as they…
Read More
The Unbelievable Scope of Utilities | Utilities Management for the Real Estate Industry
Step into any building. Flip the switch. Turn on the tap. Crank the heater or run the AC. Watch that building come to life. Buildings are living organisms. They possess their own form of lifeblood that sustains their existence and…
Read More
The Insidious Hole You Might Dig for Yourself: Utilities in Build-to-Rent Properties
Some think it’s the underrated investment strategy of the future. Others in the industry insist it’s a crazed phase doomed to settle into a niche offering. But wherever you land on the will-they-won’t-they of build-to-rent (BTR) investments, they’re growing. From mainstage topics…
Read MoreStart your most positive connection
Contact us today! Get a demo to see how you can remove the burden of utility management while reducing your costs and energy usage.
