| Glossary of key terms |
| CCAs (Climate Change Agreements) | CCAs are voluntary agreements made between UK industry and the Environment Agency to reduce energy use and carbon dioxide emissions. In return, operators receive a discount on the Climate Change Levy (CCL), a tax added to electricity and fuel bills. An operator that has a CCA must measure and report its energy use and carbon emissions against agreed targets. |
| CCC | The Climate Change Committee (CCC), originally named the Committee on Climate Change, is an independent non-departmental public body, formed under the Climate Change Act (2008) to advise the United Kingdom and devolved Governments and Parliaments on tackling and preparing for climate change. |
| CDP (voluntary) | CDP is a global environmental disclosure system adopted by over 13,000 companies to date. It is considered as the gold standard for environmental reporting and aligns with TCFD recommendations. Organisations signed up to the scheme report through CDP on climate change, water security and forests. Over 800 cities have also disclosed environmental information through CDP. |
| COP | COP stands for Conference of the Parties and it often refers to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) international meeting focusing on climate The UNFCCC COP takes place every year, and is an opportunity to negotiate new measures, and review Parties’ progress against the overall goal of the UNFCCC to limit climate change. |
| CSDDD/ CS3D | The aim of the Corporate Sustainability and Due Diligence Directive is to foster sustainable and responsible corporate behaviour in companies’ operations and across their global value chains. The new rules will ensure that companies in scope identify and address adverse human rights and environmental impacts of their actions inside and outside Europe. |
| CSRD | The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) replaces the EU’s legacy ESG reporting program—the NFRD—and raises the bar for breadth and robustness in sustainability reporting, covering categories beyond just carbon, including pollution, water, waste, and biodiversity |
| DESNZ | Department for Energy Security and Net Zero – part of the UK Government responsible for key areas of sustainability |
| EFRAG | The role of the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group is to ensure that International Financial Reporting Standards are responsive to European needs and concerns. |
| ESG | ESG is a collective term for a business’s impact on the environment and society as well as how robust and transparent its governance is in terms of company leadership, executive pay, audits, internal controls, and shareholder rights. It measures how a business integrates environmental, social, and governance practices into operations, as well as your business model, its impact, and its sustainability. The three components that make up ESG are environmental, social and governance. |
| ESOS (Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme) | A mandatory energy assessment scheme for large organisations in the UK. Organisations in scope of the scheme need to carry out audits of the energy used by their buildings, industrial processes and transport every 4 years, and identify cost-effective energy saving measures. |
| ESRS | European Sustainability Reporting Standards |
| FIT for 55 | The European climate law makes reaching the EU’s climate goal of reducing EU emissions by at least 55% by 2030 a legal obligation. EU countries are working on new legislation to achieve this goal and make the EU climate-neutral by 2050. |
| GHG Protocol | Greenhouse Gas Protocol provides accounting and reporting standards, sector guidance, calculation tools and training for businesses and local and national governments. It has created a comprehensive, global, standardized framework for measuring and managing emissions from private and public sector operations, value chains, products, cities and policies to enable greenhouse gas reductions across the board. |
| GRI | GRI is the acronym widely used to refer to the “Global Reporting Initiative ”. GRI is network-based organization used as a sustainability reporting framework. |
| IAASB | The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board is an independent standards body that issues standards, like the International Standards on Auditing, International Standards on Quality Management, and other services, to support the international auditing of financial statements |
| IASB | The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is an independent, private-sector body that develops and approves international financial reporting standards. |
| IFRS | The International Financial Reporting Standards are a set of accounting rules for public companies with the goal of making company financial statements consistent, transparent, and easily comparable around the world. |
| ISAE 3410 | This International Standard on Assurance Engagements deals with assurance engagements (limited or reasonable) to report on an organisation’s Greenhouse gas (GHG) statement. |
| ISO50001 | SO50001 is a globally recognised framework for organisations to develop an effective energy management system. Following the “Plan-Do-Check-Act” process, it requires organisations to measure their energy use, and set reduction targets and objectives to meet those targets |
| ISSA5000 | The International Standard on Sustainability Assurance serves as a comprehensive, standalone standard suitable for any sustainability assurance engagements. |
| ISSB | The International Sustainability Standards Board is an independent, private-sector body that develops and approves IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. |
| KPI | Key performance indicators are measurable values that allow you to understand how your department or organization is performing. A good KPI should help you and your team understand if the strategies you are using are taking you toward your goals |
| Paris Agreement/ Paris Climate Agreement | The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 196 Parties at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, France, on 12 December 2015. It entered into force on 4 November 2016. |
| Science Based targets/ SBTi (voluntary) | Science Based Targets provide companies with a clearly defined path to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goals. More than two thousand businesses around the world are already working with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a framework which requires companies to set a validated emissions target, as well as disclose emissions and target progress annually. |
| Scope 1 | Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions, for example, from a factory |
| Scope 2 | Scope 2 emissions are those from purchased electricity, heat or steam |
| Scope 3 | Scope 3 emissions, also known as “value chain” emissions, are indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions both upstream and downstream of an organisation’s main operations. |
| SDG | Sustainable Development Goals |
| SDR | Sustainability Disclosure Requirements broadly involve disclosure of a company’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals and communicating the company’s progress and efforts to reach those goals. Along with ESG initiatives, sustainability reporting includes financial elements. |
| SECR (Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting) | Requires all large UK companies and large LLPs, as well as all quoted companies, to report on their annual energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and energy efficiency actions they have taken. It is estimated that 11,900 firms fall under the scheme. |
| TCFD (Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosures) | As of 6th April 2022, large UK-registered companies, asset managers and financial institutes have been required by law to report on climate-related risks and opportunities in line with task force recommendations. The UK government will soon extend the requirement to publish transition plans that align with the country’s net zero commitment. Plans should include emissions reduction targets, interim milestones and steps the organisations will take to hit those targets. In the UK, transition plans have been mandated for large firms in high-emitting sectors from 2023, and this will be extended to all large businesses by the end of 2024. |
| TNFD | The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures is a market-led, science-based and government-supported global initiative. |
