Effective on August 1, 2022, the Value Reporting Foundation consolidated into the IFRS Foundation. At that time, stewardship of the SASB Standards—including all active projects—passed from the SASB Standards Board to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). The ISSB has committed to improving the international applicability of the SASB Standards, and this work is a part of the ISSB’s initial work plan.

The work to make the SASB Standards more internationally applicable in connection with the transition to the ISSB is well underway. For example, the Exposure Draft IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures (Climate Exposure Draft) includes industry-based requirements based on the SASB Standards. These industry-based requirements include proposed changes to SASB metrics that improve their international applicability. Market participants can review and provide input on these proposed changes via Appendix B of the Climate Exposure Draft. Paragraphs BC130-142 of the Basis for Conclusions on the Climate Exposure Draft outlines the approach outlines the approach developed to improve the international applicability of the SASB Standards.

The information below is intended to provide interested parties with information regarding how SASB was approaching this work prior to the consolidation. No future updates will be made to this project page.

Project Objective

The Project’s objective is to conduct research and consultation to define the strategy to improve the international applicability of SASB Standards. This strategy will include a defining potential standard-setting activities designed to improve the global applicability of disclosure topics and accounting metrics.

While the scope of the Project does not include executing these specific standard-setting activities, it will comprise the foundational research that will enable subsequent standard setting to be conducted in line with the established standards globalization strategy.

Project Background

Capital markets operate in a global context. Many investors’ portfolios are allocated among companies domiciled or with operations in various countries around the world. At the same time, many companies have complex and geographically diversified supply chains, operations, and customer bases.

Therefore, it is our objective to ensure that the disclosure topics in SASB Standards reflect globally relevant sustainability issues and that associated accounting metrics are relevant and decision-useful indicators that can be widely adopted by companies for their ESG reporting, regardless of the country of domicile or their geographic operating footprint. Based on a staff review, approximately one-quarter of existing SASB Standards metrics may currently be challenging to implement in certain geographic regions. The standards globalization strategy aims to identify opportunities—including but not limited to a potential standard-setting project to revise metrics—to improve the global applicability of SASB Standards.

We recognize that complexities and differences in regulatory environments, voluntarily adopted standards, industry structures, and business models across geographic regions create inherent challenges in developing globally applicable sustainability accounting standards. Nevertheless, through research and stakeholder engagement the technical staff aims to enhance the decision-usefulness of the standards’ content globally.

Transitioned to the ISSB

Published Documents

There are no published documents or drafts at this time.

Supplemental Materials

• Consultation Questionnaire, Excel Spreadsheet, August 2020.
• Globalization Project Pipeline webinar, video, July 2020.

Board Meeting Outcomes

September 2019

• The Standards Board discussed topics related to the Standards Internationalization Advancement project during the September 2019 meeting, in the section “Global Gap Analysis” (slides 30-40).

Board Materials

For a full list of past and upcoming Standards Board meetings, as well as associated materials, please visit our Board Meetings Calendar & Archive.

The staff has prepared this summary for informational purposes only. Any Standards Board decisions are tentative and do not change current accounting. Official positions of SASB are determined only after extensive due process and deliberations.