Highlights
Companies stand to benefit from new guidance on reporting nature-related risks and opportunities through the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) Biodiversity, Ecosystems and Ecosystem Services (BEES) project.
The ISSB intends to develop proposals that would supplement IFRS® Sustainability Disclosure Standards and related SASB1 industry guidance with new nature-specific requirements and guidance that build on the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework.
What's the issue?
The ISSB is developing proposals for new reporting requirements and guidance to help companies apply IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information and IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures more effectively to a broad spectrum of nature-related topics. These include land use, pollution, resource extraction, water and biodiversity. It plans to publish an exposure draft in October 2026.
By taking a holistic approach to a broad range of nature-related topics, IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards would differ from European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), which set separate standards for individual topics.
It is not yet known what form the new disclosure requirements would take. They could be introduced as application guidance to IFRS S1, as a new standard or through another mechanism.
The diagram below shows the focus areas the ISSB has identified for potential new nature-related requirements and/or guidance, and how they are expected to align with the core content areas of IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. The ISSB will introduce new requirements selectively across these focus areas to address the needs it identifies as the project progresses.
What’s the impact?
Companies already need to report material nature-related information after their first year of reporting under IFRS S12. However, the ISSB’s new proposals aim to provide comprehensive support for them to do so effectively.
The ISSB has agreed to build on the work of the TNFD, which is established as a popular framework for nature-related reporting, and to align with ESRS and GRI.3
Individual jurisdictions will need to decide whether and when to adopt the new requirements and guidance. In jurisdictions that choose to endorse them, these requirements may become mandatory for sustainability reporting. However, there is no immediate impact for companies because the proposals will take time to develop.
What’s next?
The ISSB has started a series of discussions to decide the scope, structure and content of its new nature-related requirements and guidance.
An exposure draft is expected in October 2026, to be followed by a period of public consultation and revision.
Actions for management
- Bookmark and revisit this page to stay informed about the project, including the exposure draft expected in October 2026.
- Understand how your company is exposed to nature-related risks and opportunities. If you are exposed, consider how TNFD framework materials can help you to report, given that the ISSB is building its requirements and guidance on TNFD.
1 The SASB Standards are governed by the ISSB following the SASB merger with the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) into the Value Reporting Foundation (VRF) and subsequent consolidation into the IFRS Foundation in 2022.
2 The ‘climate-first’ exemption in IFRS S1 allows companies to report only on climate-related risks and opportunities for the first year of reporting.
3 Over 730 organisations had adopted the TNFD framework by November 2025. TNFD will pause further development of its technical guidance and expects to conclude its activities in 2027, creating a natural transition point for its thinking to be embedded into the ISSB’s work.
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