``Characteristics of Sustainability Assurance Engagement

1. May have a hybrid form with regards to the level of assurance provided
- Limited and reasonable assurance
- Must identify differences
- Assurance on sustainability report is not mandatory
(Explanation: So, it means that it is possible to have both limited and reasonable assurance in
one engagement. When such a situation occurs, a key priority of IAASB was to clearly
distinguish the differences between limited and reasonable assurance by assurance provider in
the assurance statement. To achieve such clarity, requirements and application material in ED-
5000 have been marked with L for limited or R for reasonable after paragraph number and
requirements have been split into columns consistent with the approach in ISAE 3000 (revised)
and ISAE 3410. This helps to highlight the incremental procedures and work effort required to
move from limited assurance to reasonable assurance. In addition, it is stated in the textbook that
assurance on sustainability report is not mandatory. So, they often choose limited assurance to
determine the plausibility of information.)
KEY DEFINITIONS
ED-5000 is a standard that covers all requirements for a sustainability assurance engagement.
International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) sets high-quality international
standards for auditing, assurance, and quality management.
ISAE 3000 is the standard for assurance over non-historical financial information. The standard
consists of guidelines for ethical behavior, quality management and performance.
ISAE 3410 is a topic- specific assurance standard, under the umbrella of ISAE 3000, which
provides requirements and guidance specific to engagements on GHG Statements.
Limited assurance > review
Reasonable assurance > audit

2. Scope of engagement
- Different approaches
- Some only cover certain parts or entire report
 (Explanation: The scope of assurance engagement may vary, as mentioned, it has different
approaches which some assurance statement in sustainability report covers certain parts such
as financial or environmental KPI (key performance indicator) and some covers the entire
report including quantitative and qualitative. Any is possible depending on the reporting
boundary. The practitioner also needs to have knowledge of the sustainability information
outside the scope of the assurance engagement, so that the practitioner can avoid being
associated with information that is materially false or misleading, and to determine whether
the scope of the engagement is appropriate.)
3. Use of multidisciplinary teams
- Need to possess in-depth expertise
- Include outside specialists
(Explanation: The sustainability information subject to the assurance engagement might include
information for numerous entities within the entity’s organizational boundary or for entities up
and down the value chain. In those circumstances, the engagement team might determine that it
is necessary or appropriate to seek to use the work of a practitioner other than its own firm to
seek for in-depth understanding of report such as issues in carbon emissions or labor rights,
which could be another network firm or a non-network firm)
4. Independent auditors is important
- SEC and BOA
- Maintain independence
(Explanation: SEC and BOA are in charge of monitoring auditing businesses. It is important to
have sustainability assurance of ESG reporting because independent assurance can help build
trust with stakeholders and investors. It ensures the credibility, reliability, and accuracy of non-
financial disclosures in annual and integrated report as well as increase company awareness of
material sustainability risks and opportunities.)