Standards-setting organizations the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) announced today the launch of a landmark new strategic partnership aimed at unifying the global standards used for greenhouse gas emissions measurement and reporting.
Under the new partnership, ISO and GHG Protocol have agreed to harmonize their existing portfolios of GHG standards, and to work together to co-develop new standards for carbon accounting.
According to ISO and GHG Protocol, the new partnership comes to address the fragmentation of standards and policies as a barrier to climate action, by providing a harmonized global language for emissions accounting, simplifying processes for companies, increasing consistency for policymakers, and generally reducing measurement and reporting burdens.
Sergio Mujica, ISO Secretary-General, said:
“ISO is proud to announce this landmark partnership with GHG Protocol, which drives forward an ambition that enables co-creation, resulting in a harmonized portfolio of standards. Both ISO and GHG Protocol have a shared vision to efficiently advance climate action and simplify the task for all stakeholders. This is a new era for the carbon accounting landscape and both organizations are thrilled to be working together.”
Founded in 1947, ISO is a network of the world’s leading standardizers, focused on developing international standards supporting innovation and providing solutions to global challenges.
GHG Protocol was established in 1997 by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) to develop comprehensive global standardized frameworks to measure and manage GHG emissions from private and public sector operations, value chains and mitigation actions. GHG Protocol’s standards have been integrated and referenced in major global sustainability reporting frameworks including the IFRS Foundation’s ISSB standards and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) underlying the CSRD regulation.
Emmanuel Faber, Chair of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), said:
“The ISSB welcomes this development which will augment the globally accepted baseline for greenhouse gas accounting. Consistent, comparable carbon data is essential for investors globally enabling informed capital allocation decisions.”
The new agreement will see the organizations combine their current GHG standards – including standards from the ISO 1406X family of standards, and the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting, Scope 2 and Scope 3 standards – into harmonized co-branded international standards.
ISO and GHG Protocol also said that they will work on a joint product carbon footprint standard, to meet growing demand by companies for more granular value chain data to help guide decarbonization decisions.
Geraldine Matchett, Steering Committee Chair of GHG Protocol, said:
“With users top of mind, this partnership establishes a new mechanism for long-term collaboration, demonstrating our commitment to reducing complexity in the field of international standards and allowing the development of the core frameworks needed to enable meaningful climate action across stakeholder groups.”
