Key Terms

A measure taken by a company to reduce emissions or support the scale-up of net-zero-aligned practices or technologies within its operations, value chains, activity pools, or sectors. Actions may include, but are not limited to, operational changes, investments, purchasing decisions, or the use of market instruments where permitted (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2026). Note: Actions can also be referred to as interventions (AIM Platform, 2026).

An individual source of emissions. The term is used throughout the Corporate Net-Zero Standard to refer to commodities, products, services, and activities, such as cement or steel for category 1 emissions, or the mode of transport (e.g., maritime or aviation) for category 4 emissions (adapted from the GHG Protocol – WRI, WBCSD, 2011). Note: Activities can also be referred to as emissions sources (see IPCC and AIM Platform, 2026).

A shared system of activities that serves the reporting entity, defined at the smallest system boundary within which the specific activity or activities serving the company cannot feasibly be identified. Examples include gas grids (scope 1), electricity grids (scope 2), supply sheds (scope 3), and logistics networks (scope 3) (adapted from Brander & Bjørn, 2023 and the Value Change Initiative, 2025).

An organization, institution, or other formal body operating in the public or private sphere (e.g., a company, multilateral institution, or non-governmental organization).

Funding of actions that reduce vulnerability or increase resilience to climate impacts, particularly in climate-vulnerable regions and communities.

The extent to which targets, activities, or outcomes are consistent with relevant science-based reference pathways.

Targets that are designed to deliver a specific outcome aligned with the long-term global goal of reaching net-zero emissions by a defined point in time (2050 or earlier). These targets drive the net-zero transition by progressively increasing the share of a company’s activities, purchasing, and/or revenue that meet defined science-based performance benchmarks.

Review of compliance or performance of a product, process, system, person, or entity against specified requirements (ISEAL, 2025).

Refers to the specific conformity assessment within the target cycle and when each criterion is assessed according to the validation cycle.

A tangible physical unit, piece of equipment, or infrastructure under the company’s ownership or operational control that performs a defined function within operations and can be associated with energy or material flows that generate scope 1 GHG emissions.

Demonstration that specified requirements relating to a product, process, system, person, or entity are fulfilled (ISEAL, 2025).

A type of GHG accounting that quantifies and tracks total GHG emissions (and also removals and other accounting categories if applicable) within a defined inventory boundary over time, typically relative to a historical base year. Corporate inventory accounting is a type of attributional accounting that is the primary method used by corporations and other organizations to report emissions from their operations and value chains. The attributional accounting approach requires reporting organizations to define clear organizational and operational boundaries, within which emissions are quantified and organized across scopes 1, 2, and 3 (GHG Protocol, 2026).

A factor or condition that inhibits or delays a company’s progress toward its targets. Barriers may arise from internal or external circumstances and are expected to be actively managed or mitigated by the company. Barriers may include structural constraints.

A historic datum (a specific year or an average over multiple years) against which a company’s emissions are tracked over time (GHG Protocol, 2004).

The target base year is used for defining a GHG target, e.g., to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 25% from 2000 levels (target base year) by 2010 (GHG Protocol, 2004).

Behind the meter refers to electricity-generating units(s) and/or energy storage system(s) located on the customer’s side of the utility service meter, providing power for use on-site and/or to be discharged into the grid (adapted from US Department of Energy Integrated Energy Systems Office, 2021).

A reference point against which a company’s performance can be compared.

Benefit sharing arrangements identify how monetary and non-monetary benefits will be allocated to local stakeholders who are involved in a mitigation activity and how the distribution will take place. These arrangements outline who will bear costs and receive benefits, what institutional arrangements and implementation conditions are in place, and how decisions will be made and implemented (adapted from Climate Focus, 2023).

A best-efforts basis reflects a level of effort demonstrated through the implementation of all actions within a company’s control or influence that are necessary and appropriate to implement its targets, including the identification, reporting, and active management of material dependencies and associated risks.

Biogenic commodities, such as biogas, biomass, crop residues, wastes, or other agricultural products that are used to produce bioenergy, bio-based fuels, or bio-based products (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2026).

A system, internal or external to companies, in which emissions reductions or removals are accounted for and redistributed as attributes associated with products or market instruments sold by the company, without a physical and proportional link to the underlying production outcomes.

A certificate or tradable unit that represents one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) emissions avoided, reduced, or removed relative to a baseline. Carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market are generated by the activities of projects and programs that are certified by carbon standards. Certified GHG reductions, removals, or avoidances are quantified using project or intervention accounting methods that compare observed emissions with a counterfactual baseline scenario or performance benchmark representing the conditions most likely to occur in the absence of the mitigation activity that generates the credit (Adapted from ICVCM, 2024; GHG Protocol, 2026). Carbon credits may be issued from activities that: Prevent the potential release of emissions relative to a counterfactual scenario (emissions avoidance credits) Reduce GHG emissions relative to a baseline (emissions reduction credits) Remove and store carbon from the atmosphere (removal credits) Ex-post carbon credits are issued only after a completed monitoring period and independent verification confirming that the claimed mitigation has occurred.

A non-atmospheric physical medium (e.g., rock, soil, biomass) in which carbon is stored outside the atmosphere for a duration (fixed period or indefinite) determined by the physical and biogeochemical properties of that medium (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2026).

A company that meets at least one of the size or emissions thresholds and conditions for company categorization defined by the SBTi, including: (i) large companies in any geography based on global size thresholds; or (ii) companies in high-income countries that meet specified emissions or financial thresholds.

A company that does not meet the criteria for Category A classification under the SBTi thresholds and conditions for company categorization.

An independent, third-party evaluation of performance against established criteria or requirements, usually a standard, in which the result indicates compliance. Certification confirms adherence to the criteria and is a mechanism of assurance.

The approach taken to control inputs and outputs and transfer specified characteristics within the chain-of-custody system (ISEAL, 2025).

An approach to product design and lifecycle management whereby products are intentionally designed so that their underlying commodities and materials can be reused, recycled, or otherwise recovered at the end of their useful life. Under circular end-of-life models, products are conceived to minimize waste (prevention) and maximize material value retention. This may include, for example, designing for disassembly, material separation, durability, repairability, and compatibility with existing recovery and recycling systems. The objective is to ensure that the embedded commodities remain in productive use for as long as possible, reducing the need for virgin resource extraction and lowering associated environmental impacts. Circular end-of-life contrasts with linear end-of-life pathways, where products are disposed of through landfill or incineration without material recovery (adapted from EU Waste Framework Directive, 2008).

Promotional communications about the sustainability attributes of a product, process, service, or organization. This includes communications about the status of a client and/or the client’s association with the scheme (adapted from ISEAL, 2025). See SBTi claim.

Climate contributions in the Corporate Net-Zero Standard refer to funding delivered by companies to support verified mitigation outcomes and other actions that scale climate solutions and enable climate mitigation and adaptation. In the Corporate Net-Zero Standard, climate contributions are delivered under the Ongoing Emissions Responsibility framework, and reflect complementary actions undertaken by a company in addition to, and separate from, actions taken to implement its validated targets as required under the Corporate Net-Zero Standard. Climate contributions are not used to offset or neutralize any actual emissions (adapted from New Climate Institute, 2023). In the Corporate Net-Zero Standard, climate contributions may be expressed in financial terms (e.g., monetary contributions delivered to support eligible climate action categories); and/or in mitigation terms (e.g., verified mitigation outcomes in tCO₂e supported).

Process by which multiple co-investors and value chain partners collaboratively report and share the rights to claim the verified environmental benefits, such as absolute GHG emissions reductions or carbon removals, resulting from joint climate change mitigation interventions (adapted from VCI, 2022).

Commodities in the Corporate Net-Zero Standard refer to standardized industrial or land-based materials that are tangible and uniform, where quality is consistent regardless of the producer, and that have dedicated commodity-specific decarbonization pathways (such as emissions-intensity or alignment pathways).

Third-party-assured market instrument that represents the environmental attributes of an underlying good, product, or service (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2026). Note: The defined term “commodity” does not limit the scope of the term “commodity certificates,” which may apply to certificates for any commodity type.

A legal entity that is commercially operated and capable of generating profit or other financial gain, including organizations with a hybrid purpose such as social enterprises. The definition excludes cities, local governments, and purely charitable organizations.

The category (Category A or B) to which a company is assigned, based on its size and geography. The application of criteria within the Corporate Net-Zero Standard differs by company category.

The process of determining whether a company meets the requirements of a specified standard (adapted from ISEAL, 2025 and ISO 9000:2015).

A type of GHG accounting that estimates the impacts or changes in GHG emissions (and removals) resulting from specific projects, actions, or interventions relative to a baseline scenario in which the project, action, or intervention did not occur. Consequential accounting quantifies the global change in GHGs in the atmosphere caused by an action, project, or intervention (GHG Protocol, 2026).

A financial commitment calculated by applying a specified price per tCO₂e to the volume of emissions covered under a selected Ongoing Emissions Responsibility recognition level, to be used to provide climate contributions in support of verified mitigation outcomes and other eligible climate actions.

A mandatory requirement that a company needs to meet to be in conformity with a specified standard.

Low-carbon electricity (LCE) attributes present in an electricity supply without any voluntary purchase of LCE attributes. This may be an electricity supply contract that expresses no preference for LCE over another source of electricity (adapted from RE100, 2025).

Instances where regulation requires electricity suppliers to cancel energy attribute certificates on behalf of their customers. These might include Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) laws in the United States or the Renewable Energy Target (RET) in Australia. Customers therefore have claims to these attributes without needing to make specific choices to purchase low-carbon energy (LCE) products (adapted from RE100, 2025).

Low-carbon electricity (LCE) that may be considered matched to electricity consumption from the grid without any specific market instrument for LCE (such as an energy attribute certificate). Matching of this kind is only possible on highly decarbonized grids (at least 95% LCE in the generation mix) and with no mechanism for contractually allocating LCE attributes (such as an energy attribute certificate registry) (adapted from RE100, 2025).

The ability of a source of electricity generation to serve a source of electricity consumption (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2025).

A geographical area throughout which all sources of electricity generation connected to a synchronous grid can reasonably be expected to serve sources of electricity consumption connected to that grid. A deliverability region balances the following aspects of an area in the electricity system: (i) synchronous grid boundaries; (ii) transmission congestion; and (iii) regional connectivity (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2025).

A source of electricity generation that can serve a specific source of electricity consumption (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2025).

An external condition or development that may influence a company’s ability to implement its targets but is not fully within the company’s direct control. Dependencies may include factors such as the commercial availability and readiness of mitigation technologies, supply chain capacity to deliver low-carbon inputs or services, and the presence of enabling policy and regulatory frameworks or market incentives.

Making specified information publicly available or accessible to intended users.

Two or more reporting companies claim the same emissions or reductions (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2004).

The date from which a document, decision, or requirement takes effect, for example, when it may be applied in practice or used for relevant processes such as submissions or assessments.

An anthropogenic activity taken to reduce or eliminate sources of GHG emissions compared to a historic baseline. Examples include reducing energy consumption, switching to renewable energy sources, and reducing the use of chemical fertilizers.

A commodity, product, service, or activity that releases GHG emissions. Also referred to as activity.

Refers to an activity, product, service, or process that significantly contributes to global GHG emissions or otherwise exacerbates climate change, as set out in Annex A. Emissions-intensive activities include activities in energy-intensive and land-use-intensive sectors.

An action taken by a company to address structural constraints that limit emissions reductions within the target timeframe. Enabling actions are intended to support future decarbonization by contributing to the development of technologies, infrastructure, supply systems, policy frameworks, or market conditions necessary for emissions reductions.

The process through which an SBTi-recognized validation body assesses a company’s conformance with applicable Corporate Net-Zero Standard End-of-cycle criteria. This evaluation is based on a company-submitted target progress assessment, which for Category A companies has been assured by an independent third party.

A market instrument that conveys information (attributes) about a unit of energy, including the resource used to create the energy and the emissions associated with its production and use. An energy attribute certificate may also include information about the location of the facility that generated the unit of energy, when that facility began operations, and when the unit of energy was produced. It is an instrument to certify the production of renewable and/or low-carbon energy (adapted from US EPA, 2024).

Financial or contractual commitments made before verified mitigation outcomes have been generated, to enable or accelerate the development of projects or activities expected to deliver verified mitigation outcomes in the future.

Backward looking and based on results that have already occurred. In the Corporate Net-Zero Standard, ex-post refers to the process of quantifying the GHG effects of a mitigation action after it has taken place.

An entity that generates 5% or more of its revenue from investment, lending, or insurance activities. It is intended for commercially operated private and public financial institutions globally (including public pension funds and sovereign wealth funds). This includes, but is not limited to, banks, asset managers, private equity firms, asset owners, and re/insurance companies.

A service that supports unabated fossil fuel production, processing, transmission, and distribution, including equipment and professional services (e.g., legal, advocacy and lobbying, consulting, public relations and advertising, data, dedicated software and other information technology services, assurance, architecture, intellectual property services).

The correspondence between an action, outcome, or attribute and the underlying activity or emissions based on the geographic location or system boundary within which they occur.

Occurring within the same geographic region from which the company sources a product, material, fuel, or energy, or into which it supplies products or services, such that outcomes are reasonably connected to the physical system reflected in the company’s inventory.

A convertible and transferable instrument usually bestowed by a GHG program that represents the mitigation of a specified amount of GHG emissions or carbon dioxide removals, not necessarily used as an offset (GHG Protocol, 2026).

A consolidated percentage figure summarizing a company’s scope 3 targets. Calculated by weighting each activity’s target percentage by its share of the target base year emissions. It represents the proportion of a company’s scope 3 inventory covered by its scope 3 targets, not a total absolute reduction in emissions. It is used for communication purposes only and does not constitute a separate target for progress assessment at the end of the target cycle.

Refers to a consistent, uniform unit of output (e.g., 1 kWh, 1 ton of steel) such that every unit is directly comparable. Homogenous functional units are relevant when issuing and matching emissions sources with certificates, ensuring the emission factor applied is accurate and meaningful.

The correspondence between electricity consumption and electricity generation attributes within the same hourly time interval through physical or contractual arrangements.

An entity (e.g., supplier or customer) that has near-term science-based targets covering scope 1, scope 2, and material scope 3 emissions (scope 1 and 2 only for Category B companies), consistent with reaching net-zero by 2050 in accordance with recognized science-based standards; or that generates more than 90% of revenue from activities classified as transitional or transition-enabling under recognized sustainable finance taxonomies.⁷⁶ Over time, entities are required to demonstrate measurable progress to maintain their in-transition classification.

Free from influences that could compromise professional judgment or impartiality, ensuring objectivity and integrity in fact and appearance. Independent assurance providers have no financial, commercial, personal, or other interests, or actual or potential conflicts of interest, that could influence the outcomes of the services they provide to companies in relation to SBTi requirements.

An effect of an action that results in a displacement of the environmental impact, thereby counteracting the intended effects of the initial action (adapted from IPCC, 2022).

Degree of confidence in the object of assurance statement as part of an assurance process, e.g., limited assurance, reasonable assurance (ISO 14064, 2018; ISO14065, 2020).

Level of assurance where the nature and extent of the verification activities have been designed to provide a reduced level of assurance on historical data and information (ISO 14064-3:2019).

A well-mixed GHG with a long atmospheric lifetime. This set of compounds includes carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O), together with some halogenated compounds (e.g., SF6). They have a warming effect on the climate. These compounds accumulate in the atmosphere at decadal to centennial time scales, and their effect on climate hence persists for decades to centuries after their emission (adapted from IPCC, 2021).

Carbon dioxide removal activities that are capable of retaining carbon for centuries to millennia (adapted from IPCC, 2022). Note: The SBTi will continue to review and update this definition in line with scientific advancements.

Providing funds to support the response to, and recovery from, unavoidable climate-related losses and damages, prioritizing those least responsible for emissions and most affected by impacts. While there is no internationally agreed-upon definition for loss and damage, it usually refers to the negative effects of climate change that go beyond what people can adapt to (“hard limits” to adaptation), or where adaptation options exist but a community does not have the resources to access or utilize them (“soft limits” to adaptation).

Electricity produced by an individual generator that is characterized by direct GHG emissions less than or equal to 0.048 kg CO2/kWh. This threshold changes to 0.024 kg CO2/kWh in 2035.

Providing finance for research and development (R&D), demonstration, and early deployment of technologies or practices that accelerate the availability, scalability, and cost-effectiveness of climate solutions consistent with eligible science-based net-zero pathways. For example, this might include funding of research that addresses system bottlenecks (e.g., energy storage, hydrogen infrastructure, carbon capture and storage, low-carbon materials).

Lower-carbon technologies, products, materials, fuels, energy sources, or services are those whose emissions performance is consistent with a trajectory toward net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest, assessed against a relevant science-based benchmark, recognized taxonomies, or other eligible criteria set out in applicable SBTi methods and pathways.⁷⁷

A level of product-use-phase emissions performance that is consistent with a trajectory toward net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest, assessed against recognized taxonomies, energy efficiency standards, or other eligible criteria set out in applicable SBTi methods and pathways.⁷⁸

A contractual arrangement between two or more parties that enables the creation, transfer, or claiming of GHG-related environmental attributes (e.g., emissions factors or production characteristics). Market instruments include, but are not limited to, certificates, mitigation-related contracts and GHG credits (adapted from VCI, 2026 and GHG Protocol, 2026).

The correspondence between an action, outcome, or attribute and the underlying activity or emissions to which it is applied, based on defined criteria (e.g., quantity, activity type, temporal or geographic boundaries). In electricity contexts, “matching” refers to pairing electricity consumption with generation attributes across temporal and geographic dimensions.

A quantified result of human-induced ​​activities that contribute to climate mitigation, measurable in tCO2e (adapted from IPCC, 2022).

Providing funds for interventions that enable structural or system-level change, which unlock or accelerate mitigation at scale. These interventions do not directly reduce emissions in a company’s own operations or value chain, but instead change the conditions (policy, market, institutional, or infrastructural) that are necessary for widespread decarbonization. For example, a company might provide grants to a regional planning authority to develop spatial plans that allocate land for renewable energy deployment, or it might contribute pooled capital into a collective action platform that accelerates grid interconnection and shared infrastructure.

The latest available scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG inventory that covers a complete reporting period no earlier than two years prior to the date of submission, against which a company’s emissions are tracked over time.

Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs, are national climate action plans by each country under the Paris Agreement. A country’s NDC outlines how it plans to reduce GHG emissions to help meet the global goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5ºC and adapt to the impacts of climate change (United Nations, 2025).

A goal set by a company on a five-year time horizon or based on a milestone year toward reaching a state of net-zero emissions.

A descriptor for technologies, products, materials, fuels, energy sources, or services whose emissions performance has reached a level consistent with net-zero emissions, assessed against recognized net-zero pathways, taxonomies, or other eligible criteria set out in applicable SBTi methods and pathways.⁷⁹

A quantitative trajectory of change in a climate-relevant metric over time, based on an internally consistent set of assumptions about key drivers, such as patterns of economic and population growth and technology development, consistent with reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 or earlier.

A level of use-phase emissions performance that is consistent with net-zero emissions, assessed against recognized taxonomies or other eligible criteria set out in applicable SBTi methods and pathways.⁸¹

A net-zero science-based target includes: Reducing scope 1, scope 2, and scope 3 emissions to zero or to a residual level consistent with reaching net-zero emissions at the global or relevant sector level in eligible net-zero pathways; and Neutralizing any residual emissions at the net-zero target year and any GHG emissions released into the atmosphere thereafter through durable removal and storage.

A benchmark that stipulates the required level of performance to be compatible with a net-zero economy by 2050 at the latest (i.e., end-point value of the indicator).

An entity (e.g., supplier or customer) that has zero or residual levels of emissions across scopes 1, 2, and 3, or that generates more than 90% of revenue from activities classified as net-zero aligned under recognized sustainable finance taxonomies.⁸⁰

Measures that companies take to counterbalance the climate impact of unabatable (i.e., residual) GHG emissions, which are released into the atmosphere at and after the net-zero target date, through durable removal and storage of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Non-variable low-carbon electricity (LCE) generation resources are firm (reliable and dispatchable) LCE resources. Firm LCE generation excludes wind, solar, and marine resources, which are variable (not reliable and dispatchable) LCE resources.

Refers to elements that are prescriptive and shall be followed by companies, including those applying for Target Validation, to conform with the requirements of SBTi Standards.

An agreement, often used in project financing, to purchase all or a substantial part of the output or product produced by a project. Depending on the nature of the project, this agreement can take the form of a purchase agreement or a service contract (Thomson Reuters).

The GHG emissions across all scopes that continue to be released into the atmosphere within the target timeframe (adapted from Gold Standard, 2024).

A voluntary approach in which a company makes climate contributions beyond its required value chain targets, in recognition of the GHG emissions it continues to generate as it progresses toward net-zero. The scale of the climate contributions a company makes under the SBTi Ongoing Emissions Responsibility (OER) recognition program is determined relative to its ongoing emissions. OER is a voluntary recognition framework and does not create or imply legal liability, fault, or a legal obligation to compensate for emissions.

The result of an action, which may include changes in emissions, removals activities, or systems, and which can be quantified and attributed to the action (adapted from AIM Platform, 2026).

The state of outcomes at a given point in time, which may be assessed relative to a defined reference point.

An attributional inventory that provides a comprehensive account of a reporting entity’s annual GHG emissions (and removals, where applicable) resulting from its activities across scope 1, scope 2, and scope 3. Emissions are allocated based on physical relationships and the physical flows of goods and services to the reporting entity. This includes the location-based method for scope 2. The physical GHG inventory may use chain-of-custody models that establish physical traceability to the reporting entity and account for average emissions from a shared pool where physical traceability does not extend beyond that pool (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2026).

The ability of a company to identify, track, and collect information on activities (e.g., activity data, GHG emissions or removals factors) related to material flows of goods and services in its value chain, across its upstream and downstream processes and products (GHG Protocol, 2026).

The extent to which a company advances toward its targets over the target timeframe, based on changes in emissions and the implementation of actions aligned with those targets, and assessed at the end of the target cycle.

A company’s evaluation of its progress toward its validated targets at the end of the target timeframe, based on reported emissions and implementation of actions. This assessment is submitted to the SBTi and, where required, is subject to independent third-party assurance, forming the basis for the End-of-cycle Assessment.

A specific action designed to deliver GHG emissions reductions, storage of carbon, or enhancement of GHG removals from the atmosphere. GHG projects may be standalone projects or specific actions or elements within a larger non-GHG-related project (adapted from “GHG project”, GHG Protocol, 2004).

The process by which an organization obtains energy, materials, or services, whether directly from producers, indirectly through intermediaries or market instruments (such as certificates, credits, or contractual claims to environmental attributes), or internally through its own operations.

Capital expenditure to increase the efficiency of, expand the capacity of, extend the life of, or otherwise improve existing electricity generators (for example, turbine re-winding for a hydro generator, wind turbine upgrades, or adding additional panels to a solar farm). Depending on the nature of the re-powering activities, a re-powering date may be associated with all or only the incremental generation capacity of the generator (adapted from US Department of Energy Integrated Energy Systems Office, 2021).

Presenting data to internal management and external users, such as regulators, shareholders, the general public, or specific stakeholder groups, of GHG and non-GHG metrics associated with a science-based target or targets (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2004). This includes sharing information or data with the general public in a transparent and accessible manner, for instance, on an SBTi-owned website, a company website, a company annual report, or through other means.

Refers to the recurring, typically 12-month period over which an organization compiles, verifies, and discloses sustainability-related information, typically aligned with its financial reporting year (adapted from requirements from International Sustainability Standards Board, 2026).

The emissions that are expected to remain unabated at the net-zero target year, after implementing all available mitigation measures contemplated in pathways consistent with reaching net-zero CO₂ emissions by 2050 or earlier.

The level of residual emissions expected at the net-zero target year, as determined by the application of eligible pathways consistent with reaching net-zero CO₂ emissions by 2050 or earlier. This level reflects the emissions that remain after implementing all available mitigation measures contemplated in these pathways, based on the activities the company undertakes or is associated with.

Commonly used to refer to the full or partial release of previously stored carbon back to the atmosphere, resulting in the loss of previously achieved mitigation outcomes. The term is predominantly used in relation to carbon removal activities.

The likelihood that a reversal will occur, i.e., that a mitigation outcome will be fully or partially lost over time. For carbon removal activities, the risk arises when stored carbon is subsequently released (e.g., through forest fires, soil disturbance, or storage failures).

Demonstration that specified criteria in SBTi Standards are fulfilled through an assessment process conducted by an SBTi-recognized validation body.

The SBTi policies, processes, and requirements that seek to ensure that applicable criteria in SBTi Standards for validation and assessment processes are consistently fulfilled. This includes the assurance and oversight systems governing Target Validation, End-of-cycle Assessment, SBTi-recognized validation bodies, and companies with validated targets.

The strategic approach through which the SBTi Assurance Framework is implemented to achieve the desired outcomes and impacts of SBTi Standards and assessment processes. The model incorporates a cyclical process of validation and assessment and is supported by independent third-party assurance of company-reported information for Category A companies, as specified in SBTi Standards.

Public communication about a company’s association with the SBTi. This includes but is not limited to communications regarding a company’s validation status, approved science-based targets, and progress made on science-based targets across any medium and expressed through text, logos, or other formats.

An SBTi-owned webpage that provides information on and recognizes companies’ and financial institutions’ interaction with the SBTi system, including their validated science-based targets, commitment to developing targets, and target status.

Body formally contracted by the SBTi to carry out conformance assessments against SBTi Standards (and excludes reference to any recognized independent third-party assurance providers).

Goods that have been previously owned or used and are subsequently acquired for continued use, either in their current condition or following minor repair or refurbishment, without being newly manufactured for that transaction. Such goods retain their original form and function and are not considered remanufactured, recycled, rebuilt, or newly produced.

Carbon dioxide removal activities that are capable of retaining carbon for decades to centuries (adapted from IPCC, 2022).

An activity, emissions source, or scope is considered significant when it meets the relevance thresholds as defined in SBTi Standards.

An emissions-intensive activity that individually represents 5% or more of scope 3 emissions (categories 1-14).

A scope 3 category representing 5% or more of scope 3 emissions (categories 1–14).

A condition external to a company that materially limits the availability of options to take action at the activity or activity pool level within the target timeframe, including infrastructure, technological maturity, regulatory, market structure, or supply limitations. Structural constraints do not include internal preferences, procurement choices, or cost considerations alone.

The act of providing information or documentation to the SBTi for review or decision as part of an assessment.

An organization owned or controlled by a parent company. The term is broadly defined to include entities that are controlled by the parent company but not consolidated in the parent company’s financial statements.

A group of suppliers in a specifically defined market (preferably at subnational level) providing similar goods and services (commodities) that can be demonstrated to be within the company’s supply chain (VCI, 2026).

Occurring within the same market, network, or value chain system as the company’s emissions-generating activity, where actions are reasonably expected to influence emissions within that system due to shared infrastructure, supply chains, regulatory frameworks, or market dynamics.

The sequence of activities that include target base year assessment, target setting and validation (Target Validation), implementation, ongoing progress tracking and reporting, and company progress assessment, culminating in an End-of-cycle Assessment, after which a new cycle begins.

The duration of a target from the target base year to the target end year. Near-term targets, for example, have a target timeframe of five years. Each timeframe has a predetermined and clearly defined start and end date.

Process through which an SBTi-recognized validation body assesses a company’s conformance with the applicable Corporate Net-Zero Standard Target Validation criteria from which a company’s targets are validated.

The specified projected level of emissions or other target metric to be reached by the end of the target timeframe (i.e., ambition).

A specific, standardized approach that a company selects to formulate its targets. Each target-setting option prescribes a designated combination of a metric, unit, reference pathway, net-zero benchmark, and target-setting method.

The time period used to measure and match emissions sources, emissions factors, or emissions-related attributes in GHG accounting (e.g., hourly, monthly, or annual). See vintage limitation.

The correspondence between an action, outcome, or attribute and the underlying activity or emissions, based on the timing at which they occur.

Conformity assessment activity performed by a qualified provider that is independent of the provider of the object of conformity assessment and has no user interest in the object of conformity assessment (adapted from ISO 17000).

A qualified entity, independent from the client company, that assesses the company’s compliance with a standard or other set of requirements independently established by another party.

Tier 1 customers are companies with which the reporting company has a direct sales relationship for goods or services (adapted from GHG Protocol, 2011).

A company with which the reporting company has a purchase order for goods or services (e.g., materials, parts, components). Tier 1 suppliers have contractual obligations with the reporting company, providing the leverage needed to request GHG inventory data (GHG Protocol, 2022).

An aspect of a company’s overall strategy that sets out the actions and timelines required to implement its validated science-based targets, including key assumptions and dependencies, and the governance and accountability mechanisms for implementation and monitoring (adapted from IFRS S2 Appendix A).

The highest-level parent company (TopCo) in a corporate group structure.

Fossil fuel that is produced and used without direct interventions that substantially reduce the amount of GHG emitted throughout the life cycle (adapted from IPCC, 2023). Fossil fuel combustion (e.g., power generation) with carbon capture and storage where the capture rate is less than 95% is included in the unabated fossil fuel category for the purpose of the Corporate Net-Zero Standard.

Confirmation of plausibility for a specific intended use or application through the provision of objective evidence that specified requirements have been fulfilled (ISO, 2020. ISO/IEC 17000).

Encompasses the activities, resources, and relationships that an undertaking uses and relies on to create its products or services, from conception to delivery, consumption, and end of life (EFRAG, 2024).

Confirmation of the veracity of a fact, statement, or other data point through the provision of objective evidence that specified requirements have been fulfilled (adapted from ISO, 2020. ISO/IEC 17000).

A mitigation outcome that is observed, measured, and independently third-party assured (e.g., verified under carbon crediting standards or subject to equivalent assurance processes) ex post, rather than as a forecast or anticipated effect. In the Corporate Net-Zero Standard, verified mitigation outcomes are a subset of mitigation outcomes that are eligible for recognition under the Ongoing Emissions Responsibility recognition program. They derive from one or more of the following: (i) emissions reductions from sources outside the company’s value chain; (ii) carbon sequestration or carbon dioxide removal; or (iii) protection, restoration, and enhancement of natural carbon sinks.

The maximum time difference between an activity tracked by a market instrument (e.g., the date or time of low-carbon electricity generation) and the activity to which the instrument is applied (e.g., the company’s electricity consumption).

A large-scale AC power system in which all generators are locked into the same electrical frequency and are connected via alternating current (AC) transmission lines (adapted from IEEE, 2019).