Step 5: Track will focus on Measuring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) activities.

These activities occur throughout the five steps of the SBTN process: 

• First, while measuring impacts on nature (Step 1)
• Next, while deciding which locations to prioritize (Step 2)
• Then, while collecting baseline data and disclosing this when targets are set (Step 3)
• Throughout the process of acting on your SBTs for nature (Step 4), companies will track and report on their progress (Step 5)

Guidance for indicator selection and baseline measurement is already part of the existing guidance for Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 Freshwater, Step 3 Land, and Step 3 Ocean. Step 4 provides initial resources on target monitoring to support companies in evaluating and adjusting implementation plans to maximize outcomes in target-setting locations. It also provides companies with tools that can be used to inform reporting and secure stakeholder support. However, further guidance on monitoring, reporting, and achievement of science-based targets must be developed collaboratively with other system actors, leveraging existing indicators, disclosures, and assurance mechanisms. Further work on this topic is pending resourcing.

Public disclosure is critical for company accountability and the integrity of the targets, and we encourage it throughout Steps 1, 2, and 3. Disclosure is enabled by the claims guidance developed in partnership with the Accountability Accelerator, host of SBTN’s independent validation service.

It is critical for your company to track and report on its progress to ensure its accountability and the integrity of the validated targets. Companies can begin to do this using their Corporate Action Plan, which helps companies link targets and response options at the site and company level (depending on the appropriate scale of action) with data and metrics needed for monitoring and reporting. 

Depending on the type of targets that have been defined and the scale (e.g., site versus value chain) at which they apply, appropriate monitoring and measurement approaches will vary. Effective target monitoring plans are also likely to extend beyond pressure and state indicators at the site and company level to include self-reported company KPIs like CapEx and OpEx as well as those which capture broader social and biodiversity benefits.