The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) has launched the Integrity Matters Checklist, a new tool designed to help companies align their climate disclosures and transition plans with the United Nations’ official guidance for credible net zero commitments. The resource directly maps recommendations from the UN’s Integrity Matters report to the GRI Standards, including the newly released GRI 102: Climate Change and GRI 103: Energy standards [1][2].

The checklist operationalizes the work of the UN High-Level Expert Group (HLEG), created to improve the transparency, integrity, and accountability of net zero pledges by non-state actors such as companies and investors. First issued at COP27 and updated in 2025 ahead of COP30, the HLEG guidance outlines how organizations should report on emissions reduction, transition financing, fossil-fuel phase-down, and just-transition impacts [1][2].

GRI’s new tool provides a structured framework enabling companies to report in full alignment with the HLEG’s expectations, from setting science-based targets to detailing operational and value-chain decarbonization measures. According to GRI, the checklist ensures companies can “match their promises with action” by producing decision-useful climate data for investors, regulators, and other stakeholders [1][2].

UN leaders welcomed the launch. Catherine McKenna, Chair of the HLEG, noted that although corporate net-zero targets continue to grow globally, “the integrity of targets remains a significant issue,” adding that the GRI 102 standard and checklist will help companies demonstrate credible transition planning [1][2]. Selwin Hart, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Climate Action, emphasized that the tool provides “practical, science-based guidance” for aligning disclosures with the Paris Agreement [2].

The checklist also reinforces GRI’s broader push toward double materiality, linking environmental, social, and financial risks, which experts say is increasingly essential for corporate climate reporting [2].

As stakeholder expectations rise and COP30 intensifies scrutiny on climate integrity, the new GRI tool offers companies a clearer pathway to credible, science-aligned commitments, while supporting investor confidence in the quality of climate-related disclosures.

References

[1] ESG Today — GRI Launches New Tool to Align Climate Reporting with UN Net Zero Guidance
https://www.esgtoday.com/gri-launches-new-tool-to-align-climate-reporting-with-un-net-zero-guidance/

[2] Global Reporting Initiative — GRI launches new tool for corporate climate action
https://www.globalreporting.org/news/news-center/gri-launches-new-tool-for-corporate-climate-action/