Navigating ESG Challenges: The Role of Chartered Accountants in Corporate Sustainability

ESG criteria have become central to corporate sustainability, reshaping governance, reporting, and the accounting profession. This study investigates how chartered accountants engage with ESG by combining micro-level survey evidence from Greece with macro-level bibliometric analysis of global ESG scholarship. The survey explored accountants’ knowledge, practices, and perceptions of ESG indicators, revealing significant generational differences: younger professionals reported higher familiarity and stronger implementation of ESG practices, while older respondents demonstrated more limited engagement. Training emerged as a decisive factor, with formally trained accountants applying a broader range of ESG criteria and perceiving greater strategic benefits in credibility, competitiveness, and adaptability. Complementing these insights, the bibliometric analysis of 861 articles published between 1993 and 2025 demonstrated exponential growth in ESG-related research, particularly after 2019, with sustainable development emerging as the conceptual anchor of the field. Thematic mapping highlighted climate change, decision-making, and corporate governance as central concerns, while collaborations between countries such as China, Italy, and the United States underscored global research dynamics. Overall, the study shows that accountants are increasingly positioned as gatekeepers of sustainability reporting, but their effectiveness depends on continuous training, regulatory alignment, and integration into global ESG frameworks.