Technical governance

The SBTi has developed a technical governance model to enhance the effectiveness, rigor, and credibility of our standards, methods and guidance and to support the wide range of stakeholders they impact. We have put in place transparent  governance mechanisms to support  independent and objective technical decision-making.

Technical Council

The SBTi Technical Council is the independent deliberation and technical decision-making body initially convened in 2023. The Council has delegated authority from the SBTi Board of Trustees to review and approve SBTi Standards and other normative documentation. This group operates exclusively in the public interest. See the Terms of Reference for the current Technical Council.

Scope and role

The scope of the Technical Council covers decision making for all normative documentation, including SBTi principles, standards, mitigation pathways and methods that inform emission and non-emission benchmarks used across SBTi Standards, and other normative documents that supplement SBTi Standards (which can include annexes, guidelines, position papers, technical policies, etc.). The Technical Council reviews, approves, and recommends that the Board adopts normative elements of the SBTi framework.

Term length and renewal model

From July 2026, the Technical Council will move to a staggered renewal model, with five new members appointed each year. This supports continuity, while ensuring diversity of expertise, skills, regions, and stakeholder perspectives required as the SBTi Technical Work Plan is implemented. To operationalize this model, five members from the current cohort will step down, five members will be renewed for a 12-month period, five members will be renewed for a 24-month period, and five new members will be appointed for a 36-month period.

Call for applications

The SBTi recently held an open call for applications to appoint five new Technical Council members for a three-year term (July 2026–June 2029).

A Nominations Committee has been convened, with agreement from the Chairs of the Technical Council and the SBTi Board of Trustees, to oversee the selection process. The Committee is responsible for candidate shortlisting, interviews, and recommendations for appointments. It operates as a voluntary body to help ensure the process is fair, transparent, impartial, and based on relevant expertise, while safeguarding the independence and credibility of the Technical Council.

Nomination Committee members:

• Gonzalo Muñoz – SBTi Trustee
• Kornelis Blok – SBTi Technical Council Chair
• Laura Draucker – SBTi Technical Council Vice Chair
• Paul Griss – former Chair of the Alliance for Water Stewardship Board
• Yusuke Matsuo – Director, Business and Climate, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)

The Nominations Committee includes two independent members—Paul Griss and Yusuke Matsuo—bringing recognized expertise in standard-setting and assurance governance. They serve in a personal capacity, and exercise independent judgment in the public interest.

More information can be found in the Technical Council Nomination Committee Terms of Reference.

The next Technical Council term is expected to begin on July 1, 2026, and will operate under Version 3 of the Terms of Reference. Current members of the Technical Council, listed on our website, operate under Version 2 of the Terms of Reference. 

Our validation work sits within the wholly-owned subsidiary, SBTi Services Limited.