Following the successful COP21 climate conference in Paris, the Financial Stability Board (FSB) was tasked with developing recommendations for uniform risk reporting. The “Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures” (TCFD), subsequently established by the FSB, advocates for the disclosure of climate-related information and data by companies. By helping companies better understand material climate-related risks, the initiative aims to contribute to the stabilization of global financial markets. Building on this, comparable valuation frameworks are to be created, and market participants’ assessment of risks is to be improved. In June 2017, the TCFD’s recommendations for effective climate reporting were published.

On December 5, 2017, econsense and EnBW organized a workshop on these TCFD recommendations. The workshop took place in direct cooperation with the TCFD and was primarily aimed at practitioners—reporting companies on the one hand, and financial market participants such as analysts and investors on the other.

The aim of the event was to highlight the added value of implementing the TCFD recommendations for both reporters and recipients of reports. At the same time, the workshop aimed to discuss how to prevent the implementation of the TCFD recommendations from leading to unnecessary additional work. Furthermore, the workshop sought to highlight connections to current reporting issues, including non-financial disclosures and integrated reporting.

Workshop content:

• Providing in-depth information on the TCFD recommendations

• Discussion of questions and challenges regarding the practical implementation of the TCFD recommendations from the perspective of reporting companies

• Discussion of expectations held by financial market participants

• Discussion and commentary on the TCFD recommendations in comparison to existing initiatives on climate-related risk reporting