TY - JOUR

T1 - Identifying and closing gaps in corporate reporting of ocean impacts

AU - Jouffray, Jean Baptise

AU - Virdin, John

AU - Bebbington, Jan

AU - Blasiak, Robert

AU - Dunchus, A

AU - Lo Presti, Marta

AU - Pare, Jeremy

AU - Prosi, Daniel

AU - Quintero, Juan

AU - Rosenthal, Regan

AU - Tortora, Piera

AU - Vermeer, Daniel

PY - 2025/9/8

Y1 - 2025/9/8

N2 - As ocean industrialization accelerates, corporate transparency is increasingly seen as critical to improve governance, yet little is known about how firms disclose their impacts on marine ecosystems. This study addresses that gap through a content analysis of sustainability and annual reports from 75 of the largest companies across 8 sectors of the ocean economy. We examine which impacts are reported, how they are measured and whether firms set related targets. Most companies focus narrowly on energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, with limited attention to more ocean-specific impacts, for which fewer than 25% of firms have metrics and targets. Where measurements are reported, the use of 443 distinct indicators limits comparability and suggests a lack of consensus on what should be disclosed. Amid growing demands for corporate accountability, our findings provide a timely benchmark to support the integration of ocean-specific considerations into reporting frameworks and to guide materiality assessments that better reflect the environmental realities of the ocean economy.

AB - As ocean industrialization accelerates, corporate transparency is increasingly seen as critical to improve governance, yet little is known about how firms disclose their impacts on marine ecosystems. This study addresses that gap through a content analysis of sustainability and annual reports from 75 of the largest companies across 8 sectors of the ocean economy. We examine which impacts are reported, how they are measured and whether firms set related targets. Most companies focus narrowly on energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, with limited attention to more ocean-specific impacts, for which fewer than 25% of firms have metrics and targets. Where measurements are reported, the use of 443 distinct indicators limits comparability and suggests a lack of consensus on what should be disclosed. Amid growing demands for corporate accountability, our findings provide a timely benchmark to support the integration of ocean-specific considerations into reporting frameworks and to guide materiality assessments that better reflect the environmental realities of the ocean economy.

KW - Corporate reporting

KW - Ocean economy

U2 - 10.1038/s41893-025-01631-8

DO - 10.1038/s41893-025-01631-8

M3 - Journal article

JO - Nature Sustainability

JF - Nature Sustainability

SN - 2398-9629

M1 - S41893-025-01631-8

ER -