Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) is a framework evaluating organizations' performance beyond traditional financial metrics. Environmental factors include climate impact, resource use, pollution, and biodiversity. Social factors cover employee relations, diversity, community engagement, health and safety, and human rights. Governance examines leadership, executive compensation, board diversity, ethics, and transparency. ESG emerged in investment circles as criteria for socially responsible investing but now influences organizational strategy broadly. Municipalities increasingly consider ESG factors: environmental sustainability in operations, social equity in services and employment, and governance practices like transparency and ethics. Some municipalities report on ESG metrics, and ESG considerations influence procurement decisions and investment policies for municipal reserve funds. Critics debate whether ESG metrics are meaningful or become superficial "checkbox" exercises.