Arabic Sustainability Dictionary

Sustainability governance

The structures, roles and processes through which a company's board and management oversee and are accountable for sustainability matters.

Sustainability index

A stock market index whose constituents are selected according to ESG criteria.

Sustainability performance target (SPT)

A measurable improvement in a key performance indicator, set within a given timeline, to which the terms of a sustainability-linked instrument are tied.

Sustainability policy

A formal statement of an organisation's commitments and principles on sustainability, approved by its leadership.

Sustainability report

A periodic report in which an organisation discloses its sustainability impacts, risks, opportunities, targets and performance.

Sustainability reporting

The practice of disclosing a company's sustainability impacts, risks, opportunities and performance to external stakeholders.

Sustainability strategy

An organisation's plan for managing its material sustainability impacts, risks and opportunities and integrating them into its business model.

Sustainability-linked bond (SLB)

A general-purpose bond whose financial or structural characteristics, such as the coupon, change depending on whether the issuer achieves predefined sustainability targets.

Sustainability-linked debt

Debt instruments whose financial terms, such as the coupon or margin, change depending on whether the issuer meets predefined sustainability performance targets.

Sustainability-linked loan (SLL)

A loan whose margin or other terms vary according to the borrower's performance against predetermined sustainability performance targets.

Sustainability-related financial information

Information about sustainability-related risks and opportunities that could reasonably be expected to affect an entity's cash flows, access to finance or cost of capital.

Sustainable development

Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland Report, 1987).

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The 17 goals adopted by UN member states in 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda, covering poverty, health, education, climate, equality and other areas.

Sustainable finance

Financial services and products that take environmental, social and governance considerations into account in lending and investment decisions.

Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR)

EU Regulation 2019/2088, which requires financial market participants to disclose how they integrate sustainability risks and adverse impacts and to classify relevant products.

Sustainable procurement

Purchasing goods and services in a way that takes into account environmental, social and economic impacts across their life cycle.

Target year

The year by which a target is to be achieved.

Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)

A task force created by the Financial Stability Board whose 2017 recommendations structure climate disclosure around governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets; its monitoring role passed to the ISSB in 2024.

Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)

A global initiative that published recommendations in 2023 for organisations to assess and disclose nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities.

Tax transparency

Public disclosure of a company's tax strategy, governance and payments by country.

Taxonomy-aligned activity

An eligible activity that makes a substantial contribution to an environmental objective, does no significant harm to the others and meets minimum safeguards.

Taxonomy-eligible activity

An economic activity that is described in the EU Taxonomy, regardless of whether it meets the technical screening criteria.

Technical screening criteria

The detailed thresholds and conditions set in the EU Taxonomy delegated acts that determine substantial contribution and do-no-significant-harm for each activity.

Three lines model

A governance model, published by the Institute of Internal Auditors, that distinguishes management, risk and compliance functions, and independent internal audit.

Training hours per employee

The total hours of training provided to employees in a period divided by the number of employees.

Transition finance

Financing that supports high-emitting companies and sectors in credibly reducing their emissions towards net zero.

Transition risk

Risks arising from the shift to a low-carbon economy, including policy, legal, technology, market and reputation changes.

Transitional period

The CBAM reporting-only phase from October 2023 to the end of 2025, during which importers reported embedded emissions without paying for them.

Treated sewage effluent (TSE)

Municipal wastewater treated to a standard that allows it to be reused, for example for irrigation, landscaping or industrial cooling.

Triple bottom line (TBL)

A framework that measures business performance across three dimensions: social, environmental and financial (people, planet, profit).