ISSB agrees on the proposed way forward for nature-related disclosures

The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) has during its April board meeting in Beijing agreed to propose requirements for nature-related disclosures in the form of an IFRS Practice Statement.

The ISSB’s existing Standards already require companies to provide material information about all sustainability-related risks and opportunities, including nature-related risks and opportunities that could reasonably be expected to affect a company’s prospects.

The Practice Statement would complement IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information and IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures, without changing the requirements in the Standards. When a company needs to provide information about nature-related risks and opportunities in accordance with IFRS S1, the Practice Statement would explain how to do this. This form of standard-setting therefore minimises disruption, which is particularly important because companies and jurisdictions are in the process of implementing and adopting the ISSB Standards.

The decision today follows the ISSB’s work to specify aspects about material information on nature-related risks and opportunities for companies to disclose, drawing on the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework.

The ISSB aims to publish an exposure draft for public comment in October 2026, giving stakeholders the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed requirements, including on whether an IFRS Practice Statement is the right form of standard-setting for nature-related disclosures.

Emmanuel Faber, ISSB Chair, said:

Providing material nature-related disclosures is not optional; IFRS S1 already requires that. A Practice Statement will guide companies on how to provide such disclosures.

Applying the Practice Statement would have the full effect of an ISSB Standard for companies applying it. At the same time, it provides the ISSB with a pathway to a standard-based outcome in the future.

In addition to the form of standard-setting, at this meeting the ISSB discussed aspects of the content of the nature-related disclosures, including how they would draw upon the TNFD framework.