Sustainability as a Financial Matter in the European Union and Competitive Impacts in Third Countries

This Chapter focuses on analysing the key legislative acts of the European Union pertaining to environmental issues, their impact on corporate governance in third countries, and the global economic and competitive consequences of managing sustainability as a potential financial matter. In particular, this study presents the premises of the Action Plan: Financing Sustainable Growth (2018), the Green Deal (2019), as well as the provisions of the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD). In this analysis, the mentioned documents guiding sustainability management will be scrutinised with a view to their effects on third countries, including the effects on forest degradation.