The Shift CSDDD Explainer Series offers practical guidance for companies on meeting the requirements of the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) in line with their responsibilities under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs).
The CSDDD requires businesses to identify actual and potential human rights and environmental harms connected to their own operations, the operations of subsidiaries and those of business partners within their “chain of activities”.
EU and non-EU headquartered companies that are covered by the CSDDD must comply with the legislation by July 2029. Smaller companies that are business partners of companies that are in scope will also be impacted.
Starting with Identification and Prioritization, each explainer focuses on a key aspect of effective CSDDD implementation. It is not a complete set of guidance that covers every issue or scenario. Instead, each explainer focuses on what matters most in practice: key areas of interpretation, practical tips and common pitfalls to avoid.
Informed by Shift’s engagement throughout the legislative process and more than 15 years of experience helping companies and other stakeholders implement the UNGPs, the series aims to help companies build due diligence processes that are compliant with the CSDDD, effective in delivering better outcomes for people and the environment, and supporting sustainability reporting under the CSRD.
Effective implementation of the CSDDD also provides a strong foundation for meeting EU sustainability reporting requirements under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). While the CSDDD sets out what companies should do to identify and address their impacts on people and the environment, the CSRD requires transparent reporting about this process. In short, due diligence and reporting are two sides of the same coin. Companies can save time and resources and enhance positive outcomes when they create a single coherent process to meet both sets of expectations.
Explainer 1: Identification and Prioritization
This first explainer in the series examines how companies should identify and prioritize impacts on people and the environment as part of their sustainability due diligence process. It provides practical guidance on one of the most important foundations of effective CSDDD implementation.
