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Owing to the urgency of the climate change crisis and the emerging greenwashing issue that companies face, greenwashing in companies' carbon reduction is exceptionally important in the progress of global carbon reduction and the achievement of the Paris Agreement goals. Therefore, this study focused on multinational corporations (MNCs) listed on the 2021 Fortune Global 500 list (2001–2020) and used institutional theory to theoretically discuss and empirically test the relationship between MNCs' environmental scores and carbon emissions/intensity, as well as the moderating effect of national culture. Our results demonstrate that the environmental scores of MNCs positively affect their carbon emissions and intensity, meaning that managers tend to use high scores to hide their poor carbon reduction, showing a typical "talk" more and "act" less (i.e., greenwashing) behavior. Meanwhile, the moderating effects of individualism, masculinity, and uncertainty avoidance were negative. These revealed that the balance of MNCs' "talk" and "act" can be influenced by the domestic national cultural characteristics. Further analysis showed that the Paris Agreement did not prevent MNCs' greenwashing in carbon reduction. Such greenwashing behavior has become even worse in societies with power distance characteristics after the Paris Agreement. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate companies' greenwashing in terms of carbon reduction. The goal is to enhance our understanding of why and how greenwashing occurs based on the institutional theory perspective, extend the application of institutional theory, enrich the literature on companies' greenwashing and national culture, and offer insight into interdisciplinary research between national culture and green transition management. Finally, suggestions for policymakers on how to prevent MNCs' greenwashing in carbon reduction, considering national cultural influence, were provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine whether board governance dimensions, carbon risks and opportunities, and environmental management affect carbon management system quality (CMSQ). Based on 1035 firm‐year observations from UK companies from 2011 to 2018, we find that internal governance is significantly related to CMSQ. In addition, firms with a heightened degree of carbon risks and/or opportunities are motivated to adopt a high‐quality carbon management system to mitigate exposure and harness opportunities. Finally, climate risk and opportunity have an interactive and complementary effect on CMSQ (i.e., both climate risk and opportunity can strengthen the effect of the other on CMSQ). This study contributes significantly to a growing body of research on how corporate governance, carbon risks and carbon opportunities may simulate proactivity of corporate sustainability in general and carbon management strategy in particular. Our results provide insights for investors, policymakers, managers and regulators on the combined effect of greenhouse gas emissions and corporate governance practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the real effects of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting and the adoption of global reporting initiative (GRI) standards on carbon mitigation. Using a sample of large international companies, our empirical evidence does not show that a general form of ESG reporting is associated with carbon mitigation. However, after controlling for ESG reporting, firms that follow GRI standards when preparing their ESG reports are more likely to achieve greater carbon mitigation. Channel tests show that such firms tend to set more proactive carbon strategies and policies, make environmental investments, and actively engage with stakeholders. Finally, we find that the real effects of GRI standards tend to occur mainly in weak institutional settings (e.g., countries with less stringent carbon regulations, lower climate consciousness, and weaker legal enforcement). Overall, the central insight of the study is that standardized ESG reporting under GRI plays a soft substituting role in promoting green aspirations in an institution void of a high degree of global warming awareness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the literature on carbon accounting is growing, studies on the valuation impact of firms' carbon abatement investment (CAI) are scarce, and the influence of country-specific climate policies is largely underexplored. Drawing on both the benefit and cost perspectives of the resource-based view, we predict that investors' perceptions of the net benefits of CAI are contingent on national climate policies. Based on a comparative analysis of data from the US, the UK, and Australia, we find that CAI is viewed as value-destroying by investors in countries that do not have a stringent climate change policy. In contrast, CAI enhances firm value in jurisdictions that implement such policies. Additional analyses show that investors also consider the characteristics of CAI (i.e., the size and payback period) and the act and extensiveness of voluntary CAI disclosure when evaluating firm value. Our findings fill important gaps in the literature and have critical implications for policymakers, investors, managers, and other stakeholders who are responsible for the transition to a carbon-neutral economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the development of and gaps in knowledge in research on carbon accounting based on a systematic review of 117 papers published in influential accounting journals between 2005 and 2018. The review shows the literature has developed into four major streams of carbon accounting: carbon disclosure, management, performance and assurance, and that carbon accounting is emerging as a distinct discipline. Finally, our paper highlights future research opportunities to improve carbon accounting, so it can play an even more important role to help business achieve the climate goals of the Paris Agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]