📖 ESG Compliance Monitor — User Guide

🔑 Key Numbers

Header Bar

API Healthy — Green dot means the backend is running. Red means it's down (contact admin).

Last scan — Timestamp of the most recent scan.

Next scan — Shows when the next scheduled weekly scan will run (Monday 01:00 HKT).

KPI Cards (Stats Grid)

Latest Scan Summary

A one-line overview of the most recent scan: how many articles, from how many sources, across which topics.

Signal Sections (🟢 Signal / 🔴 Alert / 🟡 Developing)

Each section shows a count badge and a list of story cards. Each card contains:

• Title — clickable link to the original article
• Tier badge — color-coded priority level
• Source — the publishing outlet
• Date — when it was published
• Score — relevance ranking (higher = more relevant)
• Summary — one-line description
• Topic tags — keyword labels (e.g., "CSRD", "SFDR")

Scan History Table

A log of all past scans. Each row shows the scan ID, timestamp, source count, and signal breakdown (🟢 Signal / 🔴 Alert / 🟡 Developing). Click View to load that scan's results into the dashboard.

🔍 Filters

Click Apply to filter, Clear to reset.

📂 Scan History

The table at the bottom of the dashboard lists all past scans. Use it to:

• Compare scans across weeks (week 1 vs. week 2)
• Load a specific historical scan by clicking View
• Track story evolution (did a 🟡 Developing item become 🟢 Signal?)

🌿 Sources Scanned

The monitor scans the following sources on every run. The Sources Scanned KPI card counts how many of these sources returned results in the latest scan — it may be less than the total listed here if some sources had no new articles matching your topics.

RSS & News Feeds

X (Twitter) — News Clusters

X News is enabled — it returns story clusters (not raw posts) matching your topics. X Trends is disabled to keep the signal clean.

Search Terms

ESG compliance regulation · EU Taxonomy · CSRD · SFDR · ISSB · carbon accounting · greenwashing · net zero · scope 3 emissions · climate disclosure · sustainable finance · ESG reporting · TCFD · TNFD · GRI standards · double materiality · ESG ratings · transition plan · ESG enforcement · sustainability-linked bonds

💡 The "Sources Scanned" number on the dashboard reflects how many of these sources returned results in a given scan. On a slow news week, Google News feeds may return fewer results than RSS feeds. A count of 4–8 is typical; 20+ means a major regulatory news week.

Example 1: Regulatory Pitch

Scenario: The dashboard shows a 🟢 Signal: "European Commission Launches Consultation on EU Taxonomy Extension to New Sectors" from the European Commission.

Action:

1. Read the consultation — identify which new sectors are proposed and the timeline.
2. Check if your organisation operates in any of the newly proposed sectors.
3. Draft an internal brief: "The EU Taxonomy is expanding to cover [sector X]. Our current disclosure framework already covers 80% of proposed criteria. Gap analysis needed on remaining 20%."
4. Flag to the sustainability reporting team and circulate to relevant business units.

Example 2: Trade Alert

Scenario: A 🔴 Alert appears: "EU Adopts Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) Full Implementation — Reporting Obligations Start Next Quarter".

Strategic Impact: This directly affects any organisation importing covered goods (cement, iron & steel, aluminium, fertilisers, electricity, hydrogen) into the EU. Procurement costs may rise; supply chain due diligence must be updated; quarterly CBAM reporting becomes mandatory. Companies without a CBAM compliance programme face penalties of up to €50 per tonne of unreported embedded emissions.

Action:

1. Immediately alert the Chief Sustainability Officer and Procurement Director.
2. Map all imported goods against the expanded CBAM product list.
3. Engage suppliers to obtain verified embedded emissions data before the reporting deadline.
4. Prepare a board briefing on potential cost impact and compliance roadmap.
5. Monitor for member-state-level implementation guidance over subsequent scans.

Q: All signals show as "🟡 Developing" — nothing is "🟢 Signal" or "🔴 Alert".

A: This can happen during slow regulatory cycles. "🟢 Signal" requires regulatory action, enforcement, or policy changes. "🔴 Alert" requires major enforcement events. On quiet weeks, most signals will be 🟡 Developing-tier. This is normal.

Q: How do I add a new topic or peer to track?

A: DM us at X @kfchow for a customised solution on the budget of a daily coffee drink. We'll configure additional keywords, competitor monitoring, and tailored coverage for your specific compliance domain.

Q: I found a bug or have a feature request.

A: Report it via DM at X @kfchow with: (1) what you expected to happen, (2) what actually happened, (3) screenshots if possible, (4) the scan ID from the Scan History table.