ISS STOXX - Climate & Nature
Data category
- Environmental data
- Indices/Exchange data
- Research data
The data offers solutions for:
- Carbon footprinting
- Climate scenario analysis
- Environmental impact analysis and insight
- Geospatial/location data
- Investment decisions and portfolio insight
- Nature-based information
- Nature-based information: Biodiversity
- Nature-based information: Land use
- Nature-based information: Oceans
- Nature-based information: Water
- Physical risk
- Reporting: CSRD
- Reporting: ISSB standards
- Reporting: Impact
- Reporting: Other Regulations
- Reporting: SEC climate
- Reporting: TCFD
- Reporting: TNFD
- Temperature alignment
- Transition plan assessments
Who are the data users?
- Corporates
- Financial institutions
- Government
- Investors
- Trustees
- Institutional investors; asset managers; asset owners; fund managers; banks; government institutions; universities; research firms
Where and how do you source your data?
Emissions data
ISS ESG collects self-reported greenhouse gas emissions data from publicly available sources, including corporate social responsibility reports, CDP, investor relations communications, websites and others. This data is assigned with a trust metric to indicate the quality of self-reported data. For non-reporting companies, or those who report with a low trust metric, ISS ESG uses in-house emissions modelling methodology, allowing ISS ESG to calculate GHG emissions of companies based on those criteria most relevant to their line of business.
Additional climate data is collected from a range of sources, including:
Third-party providers for key financial indicators such as FactSet or Standard & Poor's (“S&P”)
Public information, including annual reports, PRI Signatory Reporting, etc.
Subscription databases, including data from CDP, Science Based Targets Initiative
Forecast data from IEA on decarbonisation pathways and market growth projections from well-respected macro-analysis forecast.
The ISS ESG Biodiversity Impact Assessment Tool uses a mix of publicly available/open-source databases (EXIOBASE), external databases (ecoinvent, etc.) and proprietary databases (ISS ESG Corporate Rating, SDG Impact Rating, Energy & Extractives Data, etc.).
Bespoke Alternative Asset Coverage relies on input received from the client.
What is the cost for your data offering?
Pricing for this solution is available upon request.
What are the key attributes that differentiate the data you offer?
On-trend analysis evolving with an ever-changing industry. ISS ESG has introduced several updates to its physical and transition risk data solutions including Value at Risk and Net Zero Solutions.
A unique and sophisticated emissions modelling system. ISS ESG utilizes a sophisticated approximation system to estimate emissions, including approximately 800 climate-relevant sector and subsector-specific models, allowing ISS ESG to calculate the GHG emissions of companies based on those criteria that are most relevant to their line of business.
Proprietary carbon specific classification system. ISS ESG re-classifies companies based on their carbon profile using its in-house industry classification system. Applying models based on traditional sector systems such as the Global Industry Classification Standard (“GICS”) or the Industrial Classification Benchmark (“ICB”) may group companies together that have a very different carbon profile.
Comprehensive Coverage. ISS ESG’s data base of GHG emissions contains more than 37,000 issuers across a range of asset classes as of March 2023. ISS ESG offers coverage on scope 3 emissions data, including both upstream (supply chain) and product usage (life cycle) emissions.
Data Quality and Transparency. ISS ESG’s granular emissions modelling system was among the first in the market and developed over three years with scientists from ETH Zurich. ISS ESG is committed to applying the highest standards of greenhouse gas accounting capabilities with unmatched breadth and depth of investments coverage, verification and approximation. Additionally, ISS ESG helps to ensure transparency by including a trust and quality rating for every data point.
Experience. ISS ESG has worked with financial market participants and governments to screen trillions of dollars in assets under management for their climate impact. ISS ESG partners with a wide range of other specialists on a non-exclusive base to complement our research and service with premier market offerings.
Distinct methodology for defining net zero alignment
ISS ESG’s Net Zero alignment assessment is based on companies’ substantiated commitments to achieving Net Zero by 2050, as well as whether they have established interim targets, and have a decarbonization strategy.
Serves as a basis for ISS ESG’s Net Zero Thematic Engagement Solution
ISS ESG offers dedicated thematic engagement solutions which allow investors to participate in a joint outreach and dialogue with companies on Net Zero alignment, particularly in relation to improved disclosure or more ambitious target setting.
Biodiversity Impact Assessment Tool
- Includes two key indicators of impact, the Potential Disappeared Fraction of Species (PDF) and Mean Species Abundance (MSA).
- Covers all five IPBES biodiversity pressure points: invasive species, land & sea changes, pollution, resource exploitation, and climate change.
- Further integrates company-specific data from ISS ESG's proprietary SDG Impact Rating data set, along with external open-source databases, to further refine and improve the data.
Water Risk Rating
· Enables investors to address water risks in their portfolios by providing a holistic and granular assessment of a company’s overall exposure to freshwater-related risk comprised of 11 distinct data points per company.
· Partner with ISS ESG’s Water Thematic Engagement team to encourage companies in the chemical and textile industries to improve their transparency around water-related strategy and risk management through the disclosure of key metrics and targets.
· Allows investors to flag companies based on the overall impact of their product and services portfolio on the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 6: “Clean Water & Sanitation” and the sustainability objective “Conserving Water”, derived from ISS ESG’s SDG Solutions Assessment.
Most recent significant update:
Q1 2024
Climate Scenario Alignment methodology enhancement
In March 2024, ISS ESG rolled out a major augmentation of its evolving suite of Climate Solutions, with a new Scenario Alignment Dataset. The new dataset helps investors assess a portfolio’s alignment with up to 22 scenarios provided by leading public pathways, to satisfy evolving global and regional climate-related reporting requirements, and to conduct a broad range of benchmarking analyses across sectors and regions. The comprehensive new offering includes up to 435 issuer level factors and covers some 30,000 issuers.
Biodiversity Impact Assessment Tool (BIAT) Portfolio Report launch
In January 2024, ISS ESG launched a new BIAT Portfolio Report functionality available on the DataDesk portal. The report allows for assessing the Portfolio’s Impact on Biodiversity via the following:
- Comparison of the Portfolio’s Biodiversity Impact against a Benchmark
- Breakdown of Impact per Sector, Activity, Country and Biodiversity Drivers
- Quantitative Assessment of Dependencies on Ecosystem Services
- Additional TNFD-Related Disclosures
Q4 2023
Climate Physical Risk methodology enhancement
In December 2023, ISS ESG released 57 new metrics to the Physical Risk Corporate Solution dataset. The release includes 36 aggregate metrics for acute and chronic hazards as well as for operational and market risks and 21 metrics for sector relative scores, for three timeframes (current, future likely and future worst). The acute and chronic aggregate metrics cater to TCFD and EBA Pillar 3 for regulatory reporting and monitoring use cases, as well as help generate modelled data for unlisted companies (via sector averages).
Q3 2023
Biodiversity Impact Assessment enhancement
As part of the Biodiversity Impact Assessment tool, ISS ESG now provides an ecosystem dependencies assessment that links the activities of issuers to 22 ecosystem services within 3 overarching ecosystem service groups.
Q2 2023
Addition of Decile Ranking and Impact Classification to the Biodiversity Impact Assessment Tool
The addition of these two new factors, in combination with the four other PDF (potentially disappeared fraction) of species loss factors, helps investors gain insight into how companies perform compared to their peers and categorize the biodiversity impact of companies.
Planned future enhancements:
- Net Zero: Extending coverage universe and including granular climate target data.
- Climate Impact Report: Integration of new/evolved Climate Scenarios.
- Nature: Enhance Biodiversity and Deforestation solutions.
What trends are you seeing in terms of customer demand?
Climate and nature remain the driving themes for all investors and also experience both a widening and deepening. Widening: As the topic of climate change unfolds as material risk to all assets and is being in focus of regulators globally, simple and easier-to-digest climate metrics keep being included into mainstream investments and reporting. At the same time, the frontrunners on the topic of climate change are getting increasingly sophisticated on the use of new data points and assessment methodologies.
Contacts
Till Jung
Head of ISS ESG
till.jung@iss-esg.com
+49.89.46.2248162
