Sustainability risks, including climate change, nature loss, pollution, and social pressures, are increasingly influencing markets, asset valuations, and financial stability. At the same time, regulators around the world are raising expectations for how banks identify, assess, and manage these risks.

This conceptual framework from UNEP FI’s Risk Centre sets out how sustainability risks should be considered across the seven core elements of risk management: risk strategy, governance, risk identification, measurement and materiality, risk taxonomy and scope, risk appetite, risk management actions, and risk monitoring and reporting. Its purpose is to help banking risk professionals integrate sustainability risks fully into their risk management frameworks, enabling them to meet evolving regulatory expectations while strengthening resilience, safeguarding capital, and supporting better-informed decision-making.

Although designed primarily for risk professionals within banks, including CROs, second-line risk teams and board risk committees, the framework is also intended to support banking supervisors, standard-setters, and risk practitioners across other financial institutions who are working to integrate sustainability risks into their risk management practices.

The framework is informed by findings from the Risk Centre’s latest report, The Landscape of Sustainability Risk Integration (June 2026). Join the launch webinar at 14:00 CEST today here.