Center for Advancing Accounting

A Model ESG Accounting Curriculum

• In Event: Courses on ESG and Sustainability III

Abstract

ESG reporting has gained incredible prominence in the last 18 months with the EU’s mandate to require climate reporting, the creation of the ISSB, and the imminent climate disclosure requirements being developed by the SEC. The rapid global interest in ESG reporting and the growth of reporting standards and statutory mandates is accelerating the need for qualified accountants and auditors to participate in their companies’ ESG reporting and assurance functions. It is imperative that higher education respond to this global trend by integrating ESG into the accounting curriculum. The purpose of this proposed paper is to provide a model curriculum for accounting programs to support standalone courses or integration into existing accounting courses. Because ESG accounting is an emerging field, there is a lack of literature to provide guidance to accounting professors to support this need. This paper will develop detailed turn-key assignments and supporting material to address the gap for the following courses and topics described in Table 1:

Authors

• Kristine M. Brands, United States Air Force Academy

• Mark A. Holtzblatt, Cleveland State University