The CSR Guide 2025 is here!

The CSR Guide 2025, published by medianet Verlag, was presented to the public in the Palais Eschenbach of the Austrian Trade Association in Vienna.

In the 16th edition of the reference work for Austria's sustainable companies and all those who care about corporate social responsibility, editor Michael Fembek takes a comprehensive look at the multifaceted picture of sustainable entrepreneurial action and shows how to combine prosperity and social responsibility.

The global framework for responsible corporate governance has changed dramatically in recent months because, starting in the USA, sustainable companies are now facing a frosty wind and measures in the areas of climate change and diversity are being rolled back. This makes it all the more necessary for companies to show that transformation and economic success go hand in hand. Even more so that such companies also use transformation as a competitive advantage. They are needed in public, where they appear with their chests held high and explain what framework they need so that they can continue to make progress and others can follow suit. "It also requires the right framework conditions, funding and incentives for companies. And this also requires the economy and its major stakeholders to work for it and not against it.“ says Michael Fembek.

What’s new in the CSR Guide 2025?

The CSR Guide 2025 is more comprehensive than ever. As usual, it is divided into several sections. The first part summarizes current developments and trends, including an insightful discussion with companies about how the transparency requirement will affect them in the coming years. Then, as every year, the CSR Guide's expert council selected 30 exemplary case studies on a wide range of topics from the circular economy to energy communities and green chemistry. In the service section, a comprehensive overview of training opportunities has been added to the well-known lists of specialized sustainability consultants and CSR networks.

As every year, the heart of the CSR Guide is the list of just over 400 companies that are above average in their commitment to CSR and sustainability based on transparent criteria. This list has been divided into large companies and SMEs. For example, you can find out which companies have received which of the most important awards, certifications or prizes. It also reports on which SDGs each company is committed to, who the official contact person for sustainability in the company is, and provides key data on the sustainability report.

This year, the CSR Guide also offers new data, for example on the reporting obligations that apply to thousands of companies from this year. As a first taste of what the upcoming transparency requirement will bring, companies were asked for examples of how they communicate their CO2 indicators, greenhouse gas emissions and Green House Gas Protocol. The key figures of over 100 companies were researched and published in the CSR Guide 2025. From this edition, the data from the CSR Guide is also available here on this website, where a simple and convenient search option allows you to filter and search by company name, award or federal state.

Just as exciting as the presentation of the new CSR Guide 2025 were the best practice examples on the topic of "Innovation in action - companies show how it's done". Michael Fembek invited the four companies Unverschwendet, Brantner Green Solutions, Klimja and MATR®, who explained their innovative business models in a talk with the renowned CSR experts Gabriela-Maria Straka, Ina Pfneiszl, Andrea Sihn-Weber and Reinhard Backhausen.

The CSR Guide 2025 is now available at www.csr-guide.at available.