Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

Business Strategy and the Environment

Publication Date

6-1-2026

Abstract

The transition to a low-carbon economy, central to achieving Paris Agreement targets and Sustainable Development Goal 13 (Climate Action), requires unprecedented public and private investment. A significant climate financing gap persists, however, exacerbated by corporate practices that erode the public revenue base. This paper investigates a critical, yet often overlooked, component of corporate responsibility: tax avoidance. We examine the impact of firm-level sustainable development goal (SDG) disclosure on corporate tax avoidance using an international sample of 7213 firms operating in 81 countries over the period 2019–2023. Our analysis reveals a robust inverse relationship between SDG disclosure and corporate tax avoidance, suggesting that firms more engaged with sustainability are also more responsible in their fiscal conduct. This result holds when using alternative model specifications and controlling for endogeneity concerns through a two-stage least squares (2SLS) model. In line with stakeholder theory, these findings indicate that socially responsible firms view tax avoidance as an illegitimate activity, aligning their financial practices with their public commitments. By demonstrating that SDG-conscious firms contribute more equitably to public finances, this study frames tax responsibility as a tangible and essential element of corporate climate action. It provides crucial evidence for policymakers and investors that encouraging comprehensive SDG engagement can strengthen the financial foundations for a sustainable transition.

ISSN

0964-4733

Publisher

Wiley

Disciplines

Business

Keywords

climate change, international evidence, social responsibility, sustainable development goals, tax avoidance

Scopus ID

105040611198

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

yes

Open Access Type

Hybrid: This publication is openly available in a subscription-based journal/series

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