IFAC Launches Sustainability Framework

The Professional Accountants in Business Committee of the International Federation of Accountants has developed a sustainability framework for businesses. The free Web-based framework tool is designed to support professional accountants and their organizations in integrating a sustainable way of thinking and working in all business processes. 

The framework, which is designed from the perspectives of business strategy, internal management, financial investors and other stakeholders, illustrates how a commitment to sustainability can help improve an organization’s products or services, motivate its people, lower its costs and enhance its reputation.

“It recognizes the importance of the three main dimensions of sustainability: economic viability, social responsibility, and environmental responsibility, as well as their interconnectivity,” said Roger Adams, chair of the PAIB Committee’s Sustainability Framework Project, in a press release. “We hope that this sustainability framework provides the means and motivation for professional accountants to address sustainability issues with greater vigor.”

“The IFAC PAIB Framework provides accountants in business with a practical framework and resources for tackling sustainable development issues within their own organizations,” said Chris McKittrick, the AICPA’s director of business, industry and government programs. “Our members’ key role in the strategic, decision-making and reporting processes of their companies positions them as critical participants in assuring that their businesses are economically, environmentally and socially sustainable over the long term.”