The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) announced the launch of two new courses, aimed at upskilling sustainability professionals to build expertise in climate and nature-related corporate reporting.

Provided through the GRI Academy, the GRI’s education platform, the new courses include “Climate Reporting with GRI and IFRS Standards,” and “GRI-TNFD Interoperability: A Guide for Nature-Related Reporting.”

The launch of the new climate reporting course follows the release last month by the GRI of its new climate standard, “GRI 102: Climate Change,” aimed at enabling companies to disclose on climate-related issues and impacts, and on how they are managing those impacts. The new climate standard add a series of new disclosure requirements,  including reporting on climate change adaptation plans, disclosures on emissions reduction targets and progress, the use of GHG removals in the value chain and on the use of carbon credits.

In addition to covering GRI 102, the course also focuses on the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards, released by the IFRS Foundation’s International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) in 2023. Recently, the IFRS Foundation announced that 36 jurisdictions have moved to adopt or otherwise use the new ISSB standards.

Key topics covered under the new climate reporting course include disclosure on greenhouse gas emissions, transition plans and adaptation strategies, and why reporting on climate-related risks alone is insufficient.

The new nature-related course follows the launch the GRI last year of its updated biodiversity standard, “GRI 101: Biodiversity 2024,” and by the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) of its key recommendations for nature-related risk management and disclosure in 2023. The GRI and TNFD collaborated on the development of the new standards and recommendations, and published a joint interoperability mapping resource to help companies looking to report on nature-related and biodiversity risks and impacts using both resources.

According to the GRI, the new course covers issues including the importance of nature-related disclosures, and providing transparency through the GRI standards and TNFD recommendations, and also includes a practical explanation for using the interoperability mapping tool to streamline reporting, as well as highlighting the similarities and differences between the GRI and TNFD.

Paul Broekhof, GRI Director of Education, said:

“To support sustainability and corporate reporting professionals in staying ahead of the curve and advancing their careers, we are proud to launch these two new additions to the GRI Academy. They are designed to build the key knowledge and skills needed to streamline effective climate and nature reporting, helping organizations meet growing demands for transparency as global sustainability challenges intensify.”