Sustainability for accountants
ESG, carbon accounting, and sustainability reporting under IFRS S1, IFRS S2 and the frameworks now mandatory in Australia.
Sustainability that connects ESG to the numbers, built around the standards and disclosures that carry the marks. Everything you need, nothing you don't.
$95 AUD. One-off payment when it launches. Instant download.
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Independent study notes for accounting certification candidates. Not affiliated with any professional body.
What this subject is really about
This elective is timed well. Australia now requires large entities to lodge climate statements as part of their annual reporting, under AASB S2, the local version of the international climate standard IFRS S2. The largest entities began reporting for years starting on or after 1 January 2025, with the next group from 1 July 2026 and a third from 1 July 2027. The skills in this subject moved from optional to in demand almost overnight.
It suits candidates who want to work in or advise on sustainability reporting, or who expect ESG to land on their desk whether they chose it or not. The subject links environmental, social and governance issues to strategy and risk, and above all to reporting that has to stand up to assurance, so the notes are written to hold up, not just to describe.
The four chapters, and what each covers
The subject moves from ESG and strategy, through carbon accounting, to reporting and assurance. Here is the whole scope before you enrol.
Introduction to sustainability
ESG, and the accountant's place in it.
- Defining sustainability and the accountant's role
- Embedding ESG through governance and strategy
- Managing ESG risk
- Sustainable finance and responsible investing
- Tools to implement ESG
Accounting for sustainability
Measuring what will be reported.
- Embedding ESG in practice
- ESG performance management and measurement
- Carbon accounting
Sustainability reporting
The standards and frameworks, in depth.
- General requirements (IFRS S1)
- Climate-related disclosures (IFRS S2)
- Global Reporting Initiative
- SDG reporting
- Integrated reporting
- Sustainability assurance
Reflecting on sustainability
Tying it back to the role.
- The accountant's contribution
- Where the field is heading
The standards and frameworks you'll use
Almost every question turns on picking the right standard or framework and applying it to the facts. These are the ones the subject leans on.
Climate-related disclosures, mandatory in Australia and phasing in across three groups from 2025. The centre of the subject.
General requirements for sustainability-related financial disclosures. AASB S1 is voluntary in Australia, while S2 is mandatory.
Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, and how they are measured for disclosure.
The GRI standards for broader sustainability reporting to a wide set of stakeholders.
Reporting against the Sustainable Development Goals, and the integrated reporting framework.
Sustainability assurance and the phasing of limited and reasonable assurance over climate disclosures.
The mandatory-reporting groups, dates and thresholds are moving as the regime beds in. This reflects the position at the start of 2026, so confirm the current settings before you rely on them.
How it's assessed
This subject has no invigilated exam. It is assessed by one submission in two parts, a written response and a recorded presentation, submitted together in the final week.
Written submission
Review a case study on an organisation's sustainability agenda and submit a written response, including recommendations.
Recorded presentation
A video on a recent or future development that will affect sustainability practice and reporting.
Case based
The marks reward applying the right standard, so the pack is worked cases and a framework reference, not a timed paper.
The traps worth knowing before the assessment
These are the mistakes markers see most often in sustainability answers. Applying the standard beats describing ESG in general.
Writing about ESG in the abstract. The marks are for connecting sustainability to strategy, risk and the numbers, not for a general essay.
Reaching for the wrong framework. IFRS S1, IFRS S2, GRI, the SDGs and integrated reporting each serve a different purpose, so match the framework to the need.
Assuming AASB S1 is mandatory. In Australia only AASB S2 is mandatory; AASB S1 is voluntary, and mixing that up misreads the obligation.
Ignoring assurance. The climate disclosures carry phased assurance, so a report written without an eye to assurance misses the point.
Treating Scope 3 as an afterthought. Value-chain emissions are the hard part and are phased in deliberately, so know where they sit.
Describing a disclosure without the S2 structure. Governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets is the shape a strong answer follows.
The kind of question you'll face
A short scenario of the kind the subject uses, so you can see how a climate disclosure is structured.
Saltbush Energy Ltd is preparing its first mandatory climate statements as its reporting group phases in. The board asks how to organise the disclosure and what it must cover on emissions. How do you frame it?
Structuring the disclosure under the four IFRS S2 pillars, placing governance, strategy, risk management and metrics and targets, and knowing where Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and the phasing sit.
The worked case maps the scenario onto the S2 structure and the Australian phasing, so you can see how a strong answer is organised.
How to study it around a full-time job
The subject runs over a 7-week study period, six teaching weeks then the assessment. Here is a plan that fits it around work.
ESG and strategy
Defining sustainability, embedding ESG through governance and strategy, and managing ESG risk. Get the link to the business clear.
Measurement and S1 and S2
Carbon accounting, then the general requirements under IFRS S1 and the climate disclosures under IFRS S2. Learn the S2 pillars cold.
Frameworks and assurance
GRI, SDG reporting, integrated reporting and sustainability assurance. Keep a comparison sheet so you reach for the right one fast.
Sort facts under S2
Practise placing any climate fact under governance, strategy, risk management or metrics and targets until it is automatic.
Write and record
Draft the written response, then record the presentation on a current development so your example is live, not textbook.
See what's in the pack
A real example of each part of the pack, not stock previews. This is the product doing the talking.
Plain English, assessment ready
The whole subject rewritten to be read fast. Here is the shape of a climate disclosure, as it appears in the notes.
The four IFRS S2 pillars
IFRS S2, and AASB S2 in Australia, organise climate disclosure under four headings. Governance: who oversees climate risks and opportunities. Strategy: the risks and opportunities and their effect on the business. Risk management: how they are identified, assessed and managed. Metrics and targets: the measures, including emissions, and the targets set against them.
The reporting reference on one page
- IFRS S2 / AASB S2: climate, mandatory in Australia, phased from 2025
- IFRS S1 / AASB S1: general requirements, AASB S1 voluntary here
- S2 pillars: governance, strategy, risk management, metrics and targets
- Emissions: Scope 1 direct, Scope 2 energy, Scope 3 value chain
- GRI for broad reporting; SDGs and integrated reporting alongside
Cases marked like the real thing
Scenario-led cases that mirror the written submission, each with a model response to learn from.
Common questions
Is this the same as IFRS S1 and IFRS S2?
The subject teaches those standards and more. IFRS S1 covers the general requirements and IFRS S2 covers climate disclosures, and both sit inside chapters on ESG, carbon accounting, other frameworks and assurance.
Do I need the Australian and New Zealand context?
It helps. Australia adopted the climate standard as AASB S2 and made climate reporting mandatory for large entities in phases, while AASB S1 remains voluntary. New Zealand moved earlier, with climate reporting entities disclosing under its climate standards since 2023. Both matter for the case study.
Is there an exam?
No. The subject is assessed by a single submission with a written part and a recorded presentation, submitted together in the final week.
Does it cover sustainability assurance?
Yes. Sustainability assurance is part of the reporting chapter, which matters because the mandatory climate disclosures move toward reasonable assurance over time.
How is this different from the Ethics and Sustainability core subject?
The core subject introduces sustainability alongside ethics. This elective goes deeper on the reporting side: carbon accounting, IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, the major frameworks and sustainability assurance.
Are these notes affiliated with the program?
No. Summo Notes is an independent study resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any professional body.
What is in the pack?
One full subject pack: condensed notes across the four chapters; A quick reference to IFRS S1, IFRS S2 and the frameworks; worked sustainability cases with model responses and structure guidance for the written response and presentation.
What does it cost?
$95 AUD when it launches, as a single one-off payment for the whole subject. There is no subscription and no per-chapter pricing.
Everything in one pack
One pack per subject. Notes, a framework reference and worked cases, together.
- +Condensed notes across the four chapters
- +A quick reference to IFRS S1, IFRS S2 and the frameworks
- +Worked sustainability cases with model responses
- +Structure guidance for the written response and presentation
One-off payment when it launches. Instant download.
The pack for this subject is in production. Join the list and we will email you the day it launches.
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