Strengthening Corporate Climate Accountability: GRI’s 2025 Climate Standards and Net Zero Guidance Tools

In 2025, the 全球报告倡议组织（GRI） advanced a major evolution in global climate disclosure. Through a series of interconnected initiatives, including the launch of GRI 102: Climate Change, GRI 103: Energy，"...... Integrity Matters Checklist, a machine-readable Sustainability Taxonomy, and a new GRI–CDP mapping, GRI is reinforcing the integrity of corporate climate commitments, supporting science-aligned transition planning, and modernising the architecture of sustainability reporting.

As expectations for credible climate action intensify ahead of COP30 {Conference of the Parties (COP): Global Climate Governance and the Road to COP30}, GRI’s enhanced suite of tools strengthens the foundation for transparent, decision-useful and globally interoperable climate reporting. The developments also respond to growing pressure from investors, policymakers and civil society for companies to substantiate their net-zero promises with actionable and measurable plans.

1. A New Foundation for Climate Disclosure: GRI 102 and GRI 103

GRI’s updated standards, GRI 102: Climate Change 2025 和 GRI 103: Energy 2025, were formally launched in June 2025 and are designed to deliver clearer, more comprehensive climate and energy reporting aligned with international science-based expectations [4].

1.1 GRI 102: Climate Change

GRI 102 places the organisation’s primary mitigation responsibility squarely on substantial reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reflecting the scientific consensus that credible climate action begins with deep, real-world emissions cuts [4].

The standard requires disclosures that explore:

science-aligned emissions reduction targets;
transition and adaptation plans;
drivers of emissions, including in supply chains;
climate impacts on workers, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, reflecting a just transition approach [4].

GRI emphasises the human dimension of climate change, noting that transparency on social impacts is essential to understanding risks, opportunities and the fairness of transition pathways.

1.2 GRI 103: Energy

The companion GRI 103: Energy standard expands reporting on:

organisational energy demand;
renewable versus non-renewable energy sources;
decarbonisation strategies;
where and how energy reductions are achieved;
energy-related performance metrics directly tied to climate mitigation [4].

Together, GRI 102 and 103 provide a science-aligned climate and energy disclosure system that supports broader global goals, including the Paris Agreement’s temperature limits.

1.3 Aligned with global frameworks

Both standards are:

fully aligned with the GHG Protocol, the most widely used global standard for emissions accounting;
based on authoritative global climate instruments;
interoperable with major reporting frameworks, such as the IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures [4][7].

A newly published joint statement confirms that organisations may use a single set of GHG emissions disclosures aligned with IFRS S2 to meet GRI 102 requirements, provided the underlying emissions are measured under the GHG Protocol and cross-referenced appropriately [7]. This means companies can report Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions once, satisfying both investor-focused and stakeholder-focused requirements simultaneously.

2. Integrity Matters Checklist: Operationalising UN Expectations for Net Zero

One of the most influential developments of 2025 is the launch of the Integrity Matters Checklist, created by GRI in partnership with the United Nations to help organisations align climate reporting with the UN’s expectations for credible net-zero commitments [1][2][3].

2.1 Linking GRI with UN climate integrity standards

The checklist provides a clear mapping between:

the UN High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) report Integrity Matters (launched at COP27 and updated with a 2025 stocktake); and
the GRI Standards, particularly GRI 102: Climate Change [1][2][3].

It guides organisations on how to report:

efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions;
the credibility and implementation of transition plans;
approaches to phasing down investment in fossil fuels;
how their actions align with science-based net-zero pathways;
progress towards delivering on climate commitments.

2.2 Why integrity matters

The UN Secretary-General created the HLEG to address widespread concerns about the quality and credibility of net-zero pledges from companies, investors, cities and regions [1][3]. Despite growth in corporate net-zero targets across all regions in the last year, the integrity of those targets “remains a significant issue,” according to Catherine McKenna, Chair of the HLEG [1][2][3].

Senior UN officials highlight the importance of the new checklist:

Selwin Hart describes it as providing “practical, science-based guidance” to align corporate commitments with the Paris Agreement while ensuring the transition is fair [1][3].
Helena Viñes Fiestas emphasises that disclosures must reflect 双重物质性, integrating environmental, social and financial risks to enable meaningful climate action [3].
Sanda Ojiambo notes the checklist’s value in strengthening the credibility, transparency and accountability of private sector contributions to the Paris Agreement [3].

2.3 Full alignment with GRI 102

Because the checklist is fully aligned with GRI 102: Climate Change, organisations using the GRI Standards are already equipped to report on all HLEG recommendations, making GRI a direct mechanism for operationalising the UN’s climate integrity framework [1][2][3].

3. GRI Sustainability Taxonomy: Advancing Digital ESG Reporting

In 2025, GRI launched its Sustainability Taxonomy, an XBRL-based digital framework that converts the entire GRI Standards system into machine-readable format [6]. This marks a major step forward in the digitalisation of sustainability reporting.

3.1 What the taxonomy enables

The taxonomy:

allows companies to submit sustainability data in a structured digital format;
supports automated data collection, interpretation and verification;
improves comparability and transparency for regulators, investors and other stakeholders;
enhances interoperability with ISSB 和 ESRS taxonomies [6].

XBRL International’s CEO described the taxonomy as a milestone that increases the “trustworthiness and accessibility” of information disclosed using the GRI Standards [6].

3.2 Support for digital adoption

To accelerate adoption:

GRI will release digital filing tools in 2025 to help companies verify that their reports meet GRI requirements;
GRI Academy will provide training to help organisations transition to digital-first reporting [6].

Digital transformation is also becoming increasingly important in the context of broader national and regional shifts toward mandatory digital sustainability reporting.

4. Reducing Duplication: GRI–CDP Mapping for Climate and Energy Reporting

Another major milestone of 2025 is the release of a GRI–CDP mapping tool that aligns CDP’s 2025 corporate questionnaire with GRI 102 and 103 [5].

This mapping:

identifies how GRI and CDP disclosures overlap and complement each other;
supports a “write once, read many” approach for climate and energy data;
reduces duplication for companies responding to both disclosure systems;
helps organisations provide more consistent and decision-useful information [5].

The initiative builds on a 2023 Memorandum of Understanding and responds to demand from companies using GRI’s Climate Change, Energy and Biodiversity Standards who sought clearer cross-framework guidance [5].

With:

14,000+ organisations using GRI Standards, and
24,800+ companies disclosing through CDP in 2024,

the mapping’s impact on reducing reporting burden is significant [5].

5. Integrating the Pieces: What GRI’s 2025 Updates Mean for ESG Reporting

Taken together, GRI’s 2025 developments represent one of the most comprehensive upgrades to global climate reporting in recent years.

GRI 102 and 103

Provide science-aligned disclosure requirements covering climate impacts, mitigation, transition plans and energy use [4].

Integrity Matters Checklist

Links GRI to the UN’s expectations for net-zero integrity, helping companies align commitments with science-based pathways and report on real progress [1][2][3].

IFRS S2 Equivalence

Enables a single set of GHG disclosures to satisfy both GRI and IFRS S2 requirements, improving efficiency and reducing duplication [7].

GRI Sustainability Taxonomy

Modernises sustainability reporting through XBRL, enhancing comparability, accessibility and digital analysis [6].

GRI–CDP Mapping

Reduces administrative burden and strengthens consistency across two of the most widely used environmental reporting systems [5].

Collectively, these tools help companies deliver credible, transparent and actionable climate reporting that meets the expectations of regulators, investors and civil society.

资料来源

[1] GRI. GRI Launches New Tool for Corporate Climate Action. https://www.globalreporting.org/news/news-center/gri-launches-new-tool-for-corporate-climate-action/

[2] ESG Today. GRI Launches New Tool to Align Climate Reporting with UN Net Zero Guidance. https://www.esgtoday.com/gri-launches-new-tool-to-align-climate-reporting-with-un-net-zero-guidance/

[3] ESG Post. New UN–GRI Checklist Strengthens Corporate Net Zero Reporting. https://esgpost.com/new-un-gri-checklist-strengthens-corporate-net-zero-reporting/

[4] GRI. New Climate Standards Can Unlock Actionable and Streamlined Reporting on Impacts. https://www.globalreporting.org/news/news-center/new-climate-standards-can-unlock-actionable-and-streamlined-reporting-on-impacts/

[5] GRI. Closer Connections for Better Climate Disclosure. https://www.globalreporting.org/news/news-center/closer-connections-for-better-climate-disclosure/

[6] ESG News. GRI Launches Machine-Readable Taxonomy to Streamline Global Sustainability Reporting. https://esgnews.com/gri-launches-machine-readable-taxonomy-to-streamline-global-sustainability-reporting/

[7] IFRS Foundation. GRI 102 and IFRS S2—Reporting on Both Standards and Equivalence for IFRS S2 on GHG Emissions Disclosures. https://www.ifrs.org/news-and-events/news/2025/06/gri-102-ifrs-s2-reporting-and-equivalence/