2026 will be a turning point for corporate sustainability, involving greater regulatory compliance, presenting truly auditable ESG data, responsible production and distribution chains, and new global frameworks that will require companies to move from theory to action. We explain how to face this and why Biosphere can make a difference.
The year 2026 will be a definitive turning point in corporate commitment to sustainability. Voluntary promises will give way to regulated, audited obligations directly tied to financial and reputational criteria. Talking about sustainability will no longer be optional—it will be a legal, strategic, and operational necessity.
In this context, the role of sustainability management platforms like Biosphere, which allow sustainability to be integrated into daily business management, will be key to meeting these new challenges. Through its system of continuous evaluation, impact measurement, and external verification, Biosphere is consolidating itself as a reference tool for companies, destinations, investors, and public entities.
For example, the European regulatory framework on sustainability will change radically in 2026. In this regard, we highlight three directives that may be key:
How Does Biosphere Help?
To address this regulatory framework, Biosphere provides an integrated sustainability management platform aligned with international frameworks such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and backed by the Responsible Tourism Institute (RTI), allowing companies to collect, audit, and report key sustainability indicators in a transparent and traceable way. The Biosphere Certified label validates the truthfulness of sustainability commitments to auditors and investors.
In 2026, the use of spreadsheets will be insufficient. Integrated platforms that consolidate auditable ESG data with traceability and third‑party validation will be required. The pressure to demonstrate carbon footprint with primary data will become the norm.
Additionally, using artificial intelligence to optimize resources must be accompanied by conscious management of its own energy impact. Technologies like the Digital Product Passport (DPP) will be mandatory in sectors such as textiles, electronics, or batteries.
The European regulation on the Digital Product Passport (DPP) came into force in July 2024. During 2025 and 2026, specific rules will be developed for each product. Beginning in February 2027, the DPP will be mandatory for industrial, automotive, and portable batteries. In that same year, sectors such as textiles, consumer electronics, tires, and detergents will be added as delegated acts are approved. Between 2028 and 2030, the requirement will progressively expand to other sectors, including packaging, plastics, chemicals, machinery, furniture, mattresses, and consumer goods.
This passport represents a key innovation in sustainable management. It is a dynamic digital record that accompanies the product throughout its entire life cycle, from the origin of materials to recycling. Through technologies such as QR codes, it facilitates transparency and traceability, providing information on composition, sustainability, reparability, and end of life. This tool, driven by European regulation, allows companies and consumers to make informed decisions and move toward a real circular economy, where verifiable data is the new standard.
How Does Biosphere Respond?
Biosphere enables the collection and management of good practices implemented by companies linked to 69 sustainability actions and more than 200 activities tied to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adapted to the different types and specific characteristics of each company; covering not only the tourism field but also a much broader spectrum of activities across society and culture, economy and governance, environment, and climate change; for a holistic and integrated approach to companies’ sustainability commitments.
Scope 3 accounts for up to 90% of many companies’ emissions, as it includes those from suppliers, transportation, and product use. In 2026, within the European framework, extended responsibility and verifiable evidence of supply chain decarbonization will be required.
Unlike Scopes 1 and 2, Scope 3 covers all indirect greenhouse gas emissions generated throughout a company’s value chain, both upstream and downstream from its direct operations. This includes emissions from suppliers, transportation, product use, and end-of-life disposal. It typically represents the largest portion of an organization’s carbon footprint. In other words, it includes all indirect emissions resulting from business activities, excluding those directly generated at the organization’s facilities or from its direct energy consumption. Scope 3 encompasses everything that occurs outside the company’s direct operational control but is linked to its activities.
Various methodologies have been developed over time to measure and manage these emissions. Among them, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) stands out as the most widely adopted internationally. This protocol identifies fifteen categories of Scope 3 emissions, grouped into two main blocks: “upstream emissions” (related to the procurement of goods and services) and “downstream emissions” (related to goods and services after they leave the company’s ownership).
Proper identification and reporting of Scope 3 emissions is essential for advancing sustainability and complying with regulations such as the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). This directive requires the detailed disclosure of these emissions, which often represent between 70% and 90% of the total, through an exhaustive categorization ranging from purchased goods to business travel. This approach promotes transparency and collaboration within the supply chain—key elements in achieving climate neutrality and progressing toward a “Net Zero” commitment.
Additionally, the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will require companies to demonstrate with geolocation that products such as coffee, cocoa, or wood do not come from deforested areas. The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), published in 2023, aims to minimize deforestation and forest degradation linked to the import of agricultural commodities into the European Union.
This regulation prohibits the marketing and export of products that contribute to deforestation or forest degradation, requiring companies to prove that their raw materials—such as livestock, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy, and wood—have not caused deforestation since December 31, 2020, and comply with current legality. This will require companies to implement traceability and due diligence systems that ensure sustainable and ethical supply chains.
Since December 30, 2025, this regulation has been mandatory for large companies and commercial operators, and for micro and small companies it will be mandatory beginning June 30, 2026.
What Does Biosphere Bring?
The Biosphere model drives collaboration with suppliers through its digital ecosystem, allowing different actors in a value chain to manage their sustainability commitments in a synchronized way. This makes it easier to identify risks, reduce emissions, and provide verifiable data efficiently.
The new TNFD disclosure framework (Taskforce on Nature‑related Financial Disclosures) will be key in 2026. It will require companies to report their dependence on and impact on ecosystems, water, soils, and biodiversity with precise metrics.
The Taskforce on Nature‑related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) is a global initiative launched in 2021 to help companies and financial entities identify, manage, and communicate their nature‑related impacts, risks, and opportunities. Its framework of recommendations, published in September 2023, facilitates integrating nature into decision‑making and promotes positive financial flows for the environment, in line with the Global Biodiversity Framework.
The TNFD is supported by partners such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), one of the four founding partners along with the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Global Canopy.
Its structure is based on four pillars (Governance, Strategy, Risk and Impact Management, Metrics and Targets) and uses the LEAP approach (Locate, Evaluate, Assess, Prepare) to guide organizations in assessing risks and opportunities. Already in 2025, more than 500 organizations have committed to adopting this framework.
In this context, the transition toward a real circular economy—based on designing durable, repairable, and recyclable products from the outset—will also be essential to comply with European legislation.
What Is Biosphere’s Solution?
Biosphere’s methodology incorporates actions and activities focused on nature management and circularity, offering the ability to assess impacts and develop biodiversity protection strategies, linking them to sustainability commitments. The Biosphere Certified certification ensures that companies not only measure but also integrate regenerative practices into their business models.
Sustainable finance will be more demanding. We are convinced that financial entities and investment funds will require companies to have credible, auditable transition plans aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
On the other hand, the need for companies to incorporate specialized sustainability talent within their organizations will grow, from ESG analysts to experts in carbon and circular economy.
What could Biosphere’s role be in this context?
Biosphere presents itself as a catalyst of trust. Using Biosphere as a centralized platform reinforces transparency, making it easier for companies to access green financing and positioning them as responsible leaders. Additionally, its training and continuous improvement approach helps reduce the talent gap by equipping teams to face new challenges.
2026 will not be just another year. It will be the decisive moment for companies to transform their sustainability commitments into measurable, auditable actions aligned with global regulatory frameworks. Those who do not act in time will lose competitiveness, financing, and reputation.
The Biosphere platform makes it possible to anticipate these challenges, transforming sustainability into a competitive advantage and a driver of real change. Thanks to its comprehensive, verified, and adaptable approach, Biosphere, a founding member of the Tourism Sustainability Certification Alliance (TSCA), has established itself as the strategic ally of responsible companies, sustainable tourism destinations, financial institutions, and investors committed to the future of the planet.