"Measurement is the first step that leads to control and eventually to improvement. If you can't measure something, you can't understand it. If you can't understand it, you can't control it. If you can't control it, you can't improve it."
- H. James Harrington
In the environmental context, sustainability measurement refers to a system and structure for measuring and attributing greenhouse gas (GHG), climate, and environmental impacts and outcomes to an organization’s direct actions and business operations.
Below are links to some reports and resources on measuring sustainability in Singapore and around the world. This list is by no means definitive or exhaustive as the field of sustainability measurement is still very much in flux.
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ISCA Climate Disclosure Guide: Taking First Steps Towards Climate-related Disclosures This guide published by the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants aims to help Singapore-listed companies meet the Singapore Exchange's (SGX) requirements for climate reporting. It features exemplary disclosures sourced from local and overseas companies that illustrate how the various recommended disclosures can be met. |
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Measurement and Reporting Requirements for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Singapore first introduced its carbon tax through the Carbon Pricing Act (CPA) and its accompanying Regulations on 1 January 2019. This measurement, reporting and verification requirements framework supports the carbon tax mechanism. |
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NTU Carbon Footprint Framework for Universities This report by the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) examines current approaches and frameworks that are developed and adopted by universities worldwide to measure their carbon footprint (CFP). It also presents a CFP measuring framework for NTU in the local context. |
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The Singapore Exchange (SGX) has introduced a phased approach to mandatory climate reporting. This SGX resource lays out the components of a sustainability report, the global reporting frameworks that should be used, and recommends a list of 27 core ESG metrics as a starting point for sustainability reporting. https://www.sgx.com/sustainable-finance/sustainability-reporting |
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Singapore Building Carbon Calculator A web-based application developed by JTC Corporation in collaboration with the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC), this free calculator measures the invisible emissions behind the construction of buildings and urban structures. |
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Sustainability Reporting Review 2021 Presents the results of the 2021 assessment of sustainability reporting among Singapore-listed issuers. The review assesses the performance of 566 companies against the Singapore Exchange's (SGX) sustainability reporting requirements. |
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Asia Pacific Survey of Sustainability Reporting 2022 This report by KPMG examines sustainability reporting trends in Asia Pacific. |
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Corporate Sustainablity Reporting in ASEAN countries This report presents an overview of the state of sustainability reporting in the six ASEAN countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, based on an assessment of the FY2019 sustainability disclosures of the top public-listed companies in each of these economies. It provides country–specific trends and also highlights the strengths and potential for improvement. |
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Climate Reporting in ASEAN: State of Corporate Practices
Analyses the top 100 largest listed companies in six Southeast Asian nations – Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – to gauge how companies in the ASEAN region are addressing their obligations for climate-related reporting. The report focuses on the companies approach to reporting, materiality, risks and opportunities, governance, strategy, targets, and performance. |
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Nature-related Reporting in Asia-Pacific Corporations: State of Readiness Analyses the state of nature-related reporting in Asia-Pacific by examining how 650 companies in 13 countries, including Singapore, reported on the following six key areas: reporting frameworks, materiality, governance, strategy, risk management, metrics and targets. |
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) accounting, a technique used to understand the extent of an organization's direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions, is a common measure of sustainability.
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Originally known as the Carbon Disclosure Project, the CDP is a not-for-profit charity that runs the global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regions to manage their environmental impacts. |
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Establishes comprehensive global standardized frameworks to measure and manage greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from private and public sector operations, value chains and mitigation actions. It has developed an emission calculation tool to account for operational carbon emission, as well as standards such as the Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard, Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard and Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard. |
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The core of Global Footprint Network is the Ecological Footprint, a comprehensive sustainability metric that compares human demand on nature against nature’s capacity to regenerate. |
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This Publicly Available Specification (PAS) from the British Standards Institute details requirements for assessing the life cycle GHG emissions of goods and services. It establishes the principles and implementation, looks at emissions and removals, system boundary, data, allocation of emissions, calculations and conformity. The Guide to PAS 2050:2011 - How to carbon footprint your products, identify hotspots and reduce emissions in your supply chain is also available online. |
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Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) A partnership between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), SBTi guides companies and financial institutions on how much and how quickly they need to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the worst effects of climate change. Its Net-Zero Standard provides companies with guidance and tools to set science-based net-zero targets consistent with limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C. |
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Accounting, the practice of measuring, analyzing and reporting a company's environmental and social impacts, as well as its governance practices, has also moved to the forefront as businesses are called upon to collectively address the challenges of meeting the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
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A nonprofit organization that has developed a certification, B Corp certification, to measure a company’s entire social and environmental performance. |
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The Coalition has developed a decision-making framework that enables organisations to identify, measure and value their direct and indirect impacts and dependencies on natural capital. |
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Dow Jones Sustainability World Index The Dow Jones Sustainability™ World Index comprises global sustainability leaders as identified by S&P Global through the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA). https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/indices/esg/dow-jones-sustainability-world-index/#overview |
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A financial industry benchmark for determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risk in projects. |
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Measures the performance of companies demonstrating specific Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices. |
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Develops global best practice for how organizations communicate and demonstrate accountability for their impacts on the environment, economy and people. A complete set of sustainability reporting standards can be accessed on the website. |
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An organization that produces benchmarks to track environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of commercial real estate and infrastructure. |
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International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation (IFRS) The IFRS Foundation is a not-for-profit, public interest organisation established to develop high-quality, understandable, enforceable and globally accepted accounting and sustainability disclosure standards. IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards are being developed by its standard-setting board – the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). |
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Moody’s ESG Insights & Analysis Presents insights and analysis on the key trends shaping ESG, climate and sustainable finance globally. |
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Morgan Stanley Capital International An investment research firm that provides climate indexes to benchmark, measure and manage exposure to climate risk and identify sustainable investment opportunities. |
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Provides analytical environmental, social and governance (ESG) research, ratings and data to institutional investors and companies. |
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An international asset management company that has developed a country sustainability ranking (CSR) tool. The framework includes a broad range of metrics and covers ESG topics. |
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Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Available for 77 industries, the SASB Standards identify the subset of environmental, social, and governance issues most relevant to financial performance in each industry. The standards are now under the oversight of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), which is currently in the process of building upon the SASB Standards. |
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Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures Develops recommendations on the types of information related to climate change that companies should disclose. |
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Thomson Reuters ESG resource center Offers insights on the latest issues concerning environmental, social and governance topics. https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en/institute/esg-resource-center.html |