The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) has unveiled a new Sustainability Taxonomy, designed to simplify and enhance GRI-aligned sustainability disclosures by enabling machine-readable, XBRL-based reporting. The taxonomy is aimed at improving the speed, comparability, and accessibility of sustainability data, supporting both reporting organisations and data users.
Built on the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), the global standard for digital business reporting, the new taxonomy covers the full range of GRI Standards — including Universal, Sector, and Topic Standards. It allows organisations of varying technical capabilities to file structured digital reports directly with GRI or through an online form.
The taxonomy is closely aligned with the digital frameworks of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), ensuring high levels of interoperability across jurisdictions and regulatory regimes.
“This marks an important advancement for digital sustainability reporting,” said Cristina Gil White, Chief Engagement Officer at GRI. “It bridges the gap between reported impacts and the people who need to interpret and act on them.”
John Turner, CEO of XBRL International, added, “By applying the XBRL language, GRI reporting can now be effectively structured, analyzed, and compared. This will help build a more transparent and data-informed sustainability landscape.”
To support implementation, GRI is also developing training materials through its GRI Academy. Additionally, filing tools scheduled for release later in 2025 will help organisations verify the consistency of their reports with GRI Standards.
Third-party providers will gain access to integration tools that ease the adoption of the taxonomy within existing reporting platforms.
