Introduction
Over two weeks in Montréal, the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB) engaged with numerous interested and affected parties on sustainability and climate-related disclosure in Canada. The reflections below draw on discussions from a variety of events and meetings organized by the CSSB and others in the spring of 2026, including:
- A Chatham House Rule roundtable with CEOs and senior business leaders, organized by the CSSB and La Caisse.
- A joint CSSB and International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) workshop held during the Sustainable Finance Summit by Finance Montréal.
- Numerous events and meetings held during Montréal’s Sustainable Finance Week.
Across these engagements, several key themes emerged: sustainability disclosure can create value for businesses by informing strategic decision-making; demand for decision-useful and comparable sustainability disclosure remains; and the global drive toward ISSB-aligned disclosure expectations continues to progress. At the same time, participants drew attention to the ongoing practical challenges companies face in the current reporting environment.
What we heard
Sustainability disclosure is a strategic discipline, not simply a reporting exercise
Participants spoke about the strategic value of sustainability disclosure. The disclosure process can help businesses identify risks and opportunities that are material to their bottom line. For example, one company shared how the climate disclosure process helped inform its operational investment decision-making by identifying regions with high water-scarcity risks. The company also noted that sustainability issues with material operational impacts, such as water usage, were common topics of discussion with investors.
Demand for decision-useful sustainability disclosure remains
We heard that investors and the market continue to expect high-quality, comparable, and decision-useful sustainability disclosure from companies. Participants noted that international investors, particularly in Asia and Europe, regularly engage companies on topics such as energy consumption and supply stability, infrastructure resilience to climate risks, and supply chain human rights risks. Sustainability disclosures, or the lack thereof, were cited as factors guiding investor conversations with companies.
ISSB-aligned disclosure expectations continue to progress
We heard that, despite the volatile market environment, expectations for disclosure aligned with the ISSB’s international baseline have continued to progress. More than 40 global jurisdictions have made progress with ISSB-aligned disclosure frameworks, and steady growth in that number is anticipated over the coming years.1
One participant cited Europe as an example, noting that recent revisions to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards made marked progress towards interoperability with ISSB Standards in areas such as transition planning and anticipated financial effects. Participants noted that having a common, internationally aligned disclosure standard supported credibility, comparability, and a more efficient reporting environment.
Implementation realities, phased relief, and proportional expectations
We also heard about the real challenges involved in implementing decision-useful disclosure and incorporating disclosed data into investment processes. Investors noted that considerable work is still needed to make disclosed information decision-useful. Companies noted hurdles around methodological and process maturity for tasks such as scenario analysis and financial risk quantification.
Determining the appropriate scope for disclosure was also identified as challenging, given competing expectations from value chain partners and varied requirements across jurisdictions. Participants suggested that the CSSB and ISSB standards can serve as a guiding compass for Canadian companies navigating these complexities. Phasing in challenging disclosure requirements and proportionality mechanisms, like those found in CSSB standards, were noted as helpful measures to address some of these challenges.
Capacity building and reporting readiness
Across our engagement activities, it became clear that the current market context requires a careful focus on material disclosure topics and diligence in building reporting capacity and internal controls. Sustainability and climate-related risks and opportunities continue to have material implications for businesses.
The CSSB will continue engaging with interested and affected parties to understand the implementation support, guidance, and education needed to advance and maintain high-quality sustainability disclosure standards in Canada. To support these efforts, we released our Guide on Adopting a Climate-first Approach in Sustainability Reporting last year.
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1 IFRS Foundation, Emmanuel Faber’s speech at the 2026 Frankfurt Sustainability Standards Conference, May 2026