Thread by @ESpacewalk

Climate pledges from top companies crumble under scrutiny via @jefftollef

"Study (by @newclimateinst) reviewing commitments from 25 high-profile businesses highlights the urgent need for a thorough system to evaluate industry’s promises."

nature.com/articles/d4158…

@jefftollef @newclimateinst "In the run-up to the United Nations climate summit in Glasgow, UK, last year, many of the world’s most powerful businesses joined governments in pledging to reduce their carbon emissions to zero in the coming decades. But an analysis of publicly available corporate documents,

@jefftollef @newclimateinst such as annual sustainability reports, shows that 25 of those companies — which together are responsible for about 5% of global emissions — are actually making much less of a commitment.

Just 3 of the 25 companies — the Danish shipping giant Maersk, the UK communications firm

@jefftollef @newclimateinst Vodafone and the German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom — have clearly committed to deep decarbonization, according to the NewClimate Institute. The science think tank, which has its headquarters in Cologne, Germany, published the analysis in collaboration with the

@jefftollef @newclimateinst non-profit organization Carbon Market Watch, based in Brussels. Thirteen of the 25 provide detailed plans that would, on average, curb emissions by just 40%, rather than 100%, over the next few decades; the other 12 companies have provided no clear details about their

@jefftollef @newclimateinst commitments...

The report underscores long-standing worries among scientists, environmentalists and policymakers about how to assess and monitor corporate climate commitments.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst This is particularly true for net-zero pledges, which could allow companies — as well as countries — to ‘offset’ their continued greenhouse-gas emissions by investing in forestry and carbon-capture projects, for example, that pull carbon out of the atmosphere.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst Various programmes, including the Net Zero Tracker, which involves academic groups and climate-advocacy groups such as NewClimate, have arisen to fill the information void, by creating standards and rating pledges.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst But scientists say that the proliferation of efforts has led to confusion, as well as sometimes questionable results.

António Guterres, the United Nations’ secretary-general, publicly expressed similar concerns during the Glasgow summit.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst In the coming weeks, he is expected to appoint an expert panel to craft clear standards for measuring and analysing climate commitments from corporations and other non-national entities such as cities and states.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst That is a step in the right direction, says Surabi Menon, a climate scientist at the ClimateWorks Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in San Francisco, California.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst Without mandating that companies disclose carbon emissions and policies, “accountability is in the eye of the beholder”, Menon says.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst Ultimately, what is needed to monitor the aggressive climate action that countries and companies are promising over the next decade, she says, is an integrated tracking system for corporate and government commitments, as well as for offsets and emissions.

@jefftollef @newclimateinst “And it needs to happen quickly.”"