Does sustainability reporting influence the environmentalism of the entities that report? We approach this question by looking at data we collected on greening measures adopted by the world’s busiest 209 seaports from 2005-2020. We divide ports into three categories based on whether and when they create sustainability reports. Early adopters were already on a greener trajectory than non-adopters before their first reports and continued that trajectory afterwards. Late adopters adopted more greening measures than non-adopters before publishing their first report but their relative greening advantage over non-reporters decreased until their first report. Concurrent with the first report, late adopters adopt a few new greening measures, but with no subsequent change in trend. This suggests that reporting only improves greening when the reporting entity has already demonstrated a commitment to greening by adopting greening measures. Our results lead us to question the benefits of sustainability reporting as a driver of greening.
