Sustainability Strategy
Sustainability Strategy ConsultingWhere strategy meets real-world performance
A corporate sustainability strategy is a framework connecting a GHG emissions inventory, science-based or net-zero targets, a materiality assessment, and governance oversight into one accountable roadmap. JBE builds strategies engineered to hold up under investor due diligence, customer scorecards, and regulatory review alike — not just to read well in a report.
- Connects GHG inventory data to formal science-based or net-zero targets
- Includes a CSRD-aligned double materiality assessment
- Covers climate risk analysis under TCFD and ISSB S2
- Builds governance structures that satisfy investor and customer scrutiny
- Delivered by the same team that performs your GHG verification and assurance
The Forces Behind Every Strategy
Twelve pressures. One measurable center.
Regulation, disclosure expectations, market pressure, and operational reality all pull on a sustainability strategy at once. We build strategies that hold together under all twelve — not just the ones easiest to report on.
Every driver above maps to a service below.
Our Services
Fifteen services. Three jobs to do.
Set direction, prove it's credible, and keep it accountable over time. Each service below supports one of those three jobs.
Set the Strategy
Targets & DirectionNet Zero Strategy & Target Setting
Long-horizon net-zero pathway design, including residual emissions and removal strategy.
Science Based Target Setting
Target development aligned to SBTi sector guidance and near-term or net-zero criteria.
Emissions Reduction Roadmap
Phased reduction pathways and abatement priorities tied to your actual operating footprint.
Sustainability Governance
Board oversight structures, policy frameworks, and internal controls for ESG reporting.
Global Regulatory Support
Navigating CSRD, California SB 253, UK SECR, and other cross-border disclosure regimes.
Prove It's Material
Disclosure & RiskDouble Materiality Assessment
CSRD-aligned impact and financial materiality assessments built on stakeholder input.
Climate Risk Assessment
Physical and transition risk analysis aligned to TCFD and ISSB S2 disclosure frameworks.
Stakeholder Engagement
Structured engagement design across investors, customers, employees, and communities.
Human Rights Risk Assessment
Modern slavery and human rights due diligence aligned to emerging supply chain legislation.
Public Green Claims Support
Substantiation review for marketing and disclosure claims against FTC Green Guides and state rules.
Measure & Verify
Performance & AssuranceCorporate GHG Inventory
Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions inventories built to the GHG Protocol and ISO 14064-1.
Supply Chain Engagement
Supplier data collection programs and engagement strategy for Scope 3 categories.
ISO Product Carbon Footprint
Product-level carbon footprinting under ISO 14067, grounded in LCA methodology.
Scope 3 Software Readiness
Data architecture and system readiness assessment ahead of Scope 3 platform deployment.
GHG Verification & Assurance
Independent verification under ISO 14064-3, at limited and reasonable assurance levels.
View this service →Why JBE
One team across strategy, data, and assurance
Most firms hand you off between a strategy team, a data team, and an assurance team. We keep the same technical staff across all three, so your target-setting assumptions match your inventory methodology, and your inventory methodology holds up under verification.
Built on real inventory and LCA work. Our strategy recommendations are grounded in the same emission factors, boundary-setting, and calculation methods our team uses daily on inventory and life cycle assessment engagements.
EcoVadis Accredited Consultant on staff. We know how a strategy reads to a customer sustainability scorecard or investor due diligence questionnaire, not just to a regulator.
Assurance-ready by design. Because we also perform ISO 14064-3 verification, we build strategies and inventories that can withstand independent scrutiny from day one.
Boutique firm, senior access. The people who scope your strategy are the ones doing the analysis — no hand-off to junior staff partway through.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sustainability strategy, explained
What does a sustainability strategy actually include?
A working sustainability strategy connects a GHG inventory and reduction roadmap to formal targets (science-based or net zero), a materiality assessment identifying what matters to the business and its stakeholders, climate risk analysis, and the governance structure to keep it all accountable and disclosure-ready.
Do we need a net-zero target if we already report our GHG emissions?
Reporting emissions and committing to a target are different exercises. An inventory tells you where emissions come from today; a science-based or net-zero target sets a validated trajectory for reducing them — increasingly expected by investors and customers even where it isn't yet legally required.
What is the difference between double materiality and traditional materiality?
Traditional materiality asks what sustainability topics affect financial performance. Double materiality, the CSRD standard, also asks what impact the company has on people and the environment — regardless of whether that impact hits the bottom line. Both perspectives get assessed and reported.
How is a sustainability strategy different from a GHG inventory?
A GHG inventory is one input into a strategy, not the strategy itself. The inventory quantifies emissions; the strategy determines what to do about them, how to communicate it credibly, how to manage related risks, and how to govern the program over time.
How long does it take to build a sustainability strategy roadmap?
A first-generation strategy — inventory review, materiality, target-setting, and governance structure — typically takes 3 to 5 months depending on data readiness and how many business units are involved. Organizations with an existing inventory move faster.
Do private, non-publicly-traded companies need a sustainability strategy?
Yes, increasingly. Customer due diligence questionnaires, supply chain disclosure requests from public-company buyers, and state-level rules like California SB 253 now reach private companies indirectly through the value chain, even without direct SEC or stock-exchange obligations.
What is the difference between an ESG strategy and a sustainability strategy?
In practice the terms overlap heavily. "ESG" more often signals an investor-facing, disclosure-driven framing (ratings, financial materiality), while "sustainability strategy" more often signals an operational framing (emissions reduction, resource use, supply chain). A well-built strategy satisfies both audiences from the same underlying data.
How much does a corporate sustainability strategy engagement cost?
Cost depends primarily on organizational complexity — number of facilities, existing data maturity, and whether a GHG inventory already exists. A scoping call is the fastest way to get an accurate range for your organization; contact JBE below to start that conversation.
Start with what's measurable
Tell us where you are today — first inventory, first target, first disclosure requirement — and we'll scope the fastest credible path to a strategy that holds up.
Case Studies & Publications
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Driving Environmental Awareness Through Consumer Habits
Supported the conception, launch, and multi-year tracking of a global consumer awareness campaign to promote water conservation for an oral care brand, resulting in a measurable reduction in water use.
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Powering the Future: Climate Strategy Roadmap for Renewable Energy Producer
Developed a multi-year climate strategy roadmap for a North American renewable power generator; focusing on governance, emissions reduction, regulatory compliance, and risk assessment.
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Informing Clean Air Fund Spending on Carbon Mitigation Projects
Performed a global study which quantified black carbon emissions and their Arctic impact to inform Clean Air Fund spending, identifying key sources, regional contributions, and strategic mitigation opportunities.
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Portfolio‑level Emissions Accounting Across Diverse Assets
Developed the first carbon inventory for a private equity portfolio consisting of companies across thirteen industrial sectors. Support now includes multi-year emissions monitoring and tracking.
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Development of Coconut Farming Carbon Emission Factor
Analysis evaluating regenerative practices’ impacts on soil carbon, emissions and monitoring needs for 600+ farms in effort to improve the performance of coconut farming.
