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Urgent revision of SBTi FLAG Guidance V1.1 Criteria 1 and 4 Public Consultation

Introduction

Following the Standard Operating Procedure for Development of SBTi Standards and in line with the process detailed in the project Terms of Reference, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) is opening a public consultation process for external stakeholders to provide feedback on an urgent revision to criteria 1 and 4 of the SBTi Forest, Land and Agriculture Science-Based Target-Setting Guidance V1.1 December 2023 (SBTi FLAG Guidance V1.1).

Information on the revision proposal for consultation is available here.

We welcome feedback from all stakeholders with an interest in the forest, land and agriculture sector's transition to net-zero.
Whether you complete the entire survey or focus on the questions most relevant to you, your feedback will help strengthen the clarity, credibility, and ambition of the SBTi FLAG Guidance.

The survey takes as little as 15 minutes. Progress will be saved automatically as you complete the survey. You can return to provide input at any time.

Survey objectives

This public consultation is open from October 7, 2025 until 11:59 PM PT on November 6, 2025.

The main goals of this consultation survey are to:
  • Gather feedback from external stakeholders on the proposed changes to FLAG Criterion 4 including:
    • The required target date for no-deforestation commitments
    • The cutoff date for land conversion
    • The scope of commodities covered
    • The required public documentation for making a no-deforestation commitment
  • Gather feedback from external stakeholders on some proposed minor adjustments to maintain the functionality of FLAG Criterion 1.
  • Engage directly and indirectly with external stakeholders to build support and identify areas of improvement.
What to expect from the survey

The survey starts with a brief section asking for contact information and some general introductory questions. This helps the SBTi to group and analyze the feedback accordingly.

The following questions are grouped according to the same sections as the consultation draft document, and will inform the final revised FLAG criteria 1 and 4.

Please note, you are not required to answer all the survey questions and you can skip questions, should you wish.

Results of this consultation will be made publicly available, but responses may be published at the stakeholder group level, not by individual or organization name. For example, companies may be identified as the stakeholder group "Company" rather than "ABC Corp".

All feedback will be analyzed and used to inform the revised FLAG criteria 1 and 4. When analyzing the data, it is helpful for the SBTi to know which responses are from which stakeholder group, so we kindly ask you to provide us with information about your organization.

Respondents are encouraged to provide their own original inputs to the survey. While we recognize that AI tools may be used for translations or refinements, responses that are entirely AI-generated or bot-generated without original input may be subject to further review and potential exclusion from the analysis. The SBTi reserves the right to exclude submissions that it reasonably deems to be entirely AI- or bot-generated from analysis.

For queries relating to this survey, please contact flag@sciencebasedtargets.org.

Stakeholders are strongly encouraged to submit their feedback via the official public consultation survey, which is the primary channel through which submissions will be reviewed and analyzed. In cases where stakeholders are submitting consolidated or aggregated feedback that cannot reasonably be submitted through the online survey, these may be sent to flag@sciencebasedtargets.org. When providing feedback by email, please ensure that:
  • Each comment clearly references the relevant section and criterion, and
  • It is specified whether the submission can be made public as part of the consultation summary report.
You can view the survey questions before submitting your responses by reviewing the consultation draft.

Please note that feedback submitted outside the official consultation channels, as well as unclear or incomplete submissions may not be reviewed or considered as part of the consultation process.
Disclaimer and data privacy

Please note that all submitted information and data will be treated with respect for your privacy in compliance with SBTi's privacy policy and all relevant and applicable data protection and data privacy regulations and legislation.

We collect, handle and safeguard the information provided within this survey in the following way:

  • The data collected is used exclusively for the purpose of this consultation, which may include (i) the evaluation and analysis of submissions, and (ii) contacting you regarding your submission and the revision process.
  • Your personal data will be treated with the utmost confidentiality. We will not disclose your personal information without your explicit consent.
  • We employ industry-standard security measures to protect your data against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. We are committed to maintaining the security and integrity of all data collected.
  • We will retain your data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this consultation unless a longer retention period is necessary for legitimate research purposes.
  • Any information or data that is published based on submissions will be anonymized.
“Science Based Targets initiative” and “SBTi” refer to the Science Based Targets initiative, a private company registered in England number 14960097 and registered as a UK Charity number 1205768.

© SBTi 2025
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