ESG reporting has become a core form of corporate disclosure alongside financial statements, communicating a company's environmental, social and governance impacts to investors, regulators and other stakeholders. This course examines ESG issues, their connections to firm value, and the evolving landscape of ESG disclosure - with special emphasis on the HKEX ESG Reporting Guide and leading international standards.

Since 2016, companies listed in Hong Kong are required to comply with the ESG Reporting Guide issued by the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX). According to the 2023 World Economic Forum Job Report, sustainability specialist also becomes one of the top 3 rapidly growing jobs. For example, the "Big Four" accounting firms - Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG - already set up new teams working on ESG auditing and consulting.

Given the increasing importance of ESG reporting and disclosure, this course aims to:

1. Provide a clear overview of core environmental, social, and governance issues and their impacts on firm value and stakeholder decision‑making.
2. Explain the role of ESG disclosure as a corporate statement alongside financial reporting, including drivers, audiences, and regulatory developments (with emphasis on HKEX requirements).
3. Equip students with knowledge of the HKEX ESG Reporting Guide and leading international reporting frameworks and standards (e.g., GRI, SASB/ISSB, TCFD, CDP).
4. Explore the growth of the ESG market, the integration of ESG factors into investing, and the vital role of transparent ESG disclosures in enabling effective ESG analysis and decision-making.
5. Enable students to critically evaluate corporate ESG reports, third-party ratings, assurance approaches, and disclosure quality, and to design an implementation roadmap and disclosure strategy for an organization.

*DEC element Final examination [Open book examination] : Students will be assessed via examination of their knowledge learned in class. Students are required to pass both coursework and examination components to guarantee to pass the course. Failing either component may lead to failure in the course.