SCOPE3ACT · Beyond Firm Boundaries: Carbon Accounting with Scope 3 Emissions - An Analytical and Actionable Framework for Implementation

The EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) mandates Carbon Accounting (CA). Yet firms struggle with its implementation, particularly for scope 3 emissions which originate from external actors beyond their control. Existing research offers a paucity of guidance on this issue. It is primarily focused on CA solutions and constrained by a narrow focal-firm perspective that overlooks the necessary resources and their interplay within the broader business ecosystem.The project’s contribution will be a novel analytical and actionable framework that supports firms in the implementation of CA. For practice, it will provide an implementation guide for the approximately 50,000 EU large firms and a further medium-sized firms affected by the CSRD, supporting their compliance, and contributing to the European Green Deal. For academia, the framework will advance theory by synthesising ecosystem, resource dependency, and configuration theories. It moves beyond the limitations of existing research by considering necessary resources and an ecosystem perspective. The framework will open new research avenues into the complexities of implementing regulatory-driven sustainability initiatives. For policymakers at a national Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action, the framework will provide concrete insights into practical CA implementation. This enables policymakers to define more effective and practicable national guidelines to support the rollout of the CSRD.To develop this framework, a sequential mixed-methods approach will be utilised. The project will first employ a multiple-case study approach in Denmark and Germany to map corporate ecosystems and identify necessary resources required. Subsequently, these qualitative insights will inform a quantitative survey. Fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis will then be used to model the interplay of the necessary resources, identifying the resource configurations that lead to effective implementation of CA.