Sustainability, present status of its treatment by international technical organizations

Abstract

The purpose of this work is to review the current status of published or in process of being published research, draft standards and reference guides, related to the information on sustainability.

Professional associations and entities, global public or business organizations, have worked or fulfilled reference frameworks and guides to generate information related to sustainability. They have performed it with objectives set on information other than financial, focusing on environmental, economic or social issues.

There are different groups identified by their interest in the data contained in the sustainability reports, such as society in general, investors, customers, suppliers, workers and others related to the entities.

Standardized information on reasonable and comparable grounds has been the basis for the development of financial information, the support of its credibility and its acceptance by the concert of interested users worldwide. These concepts have allowed the international bodies which issued accounting and auditing standards, such as the IASB (International Accounting Standards Board) and IFAC (International Federation of Accountants), to maintain a level of prestige and acceptance in almost all countries. These same bases should be the ones that consolidate the issuance of sustainability standards.