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8.3 – Corporate Commitments FAQ

August 29, 2022   |   Category: No categories

What is Speed & Scale?

Speed & Scale is an initiative to move leaders to act on the climate crisis. It is based on the eponymous action plan to cut emissions to net zero by 2050 and get halfway there by 2030. The Speed & Scale tracker measures progress against the plan across its 10 objectives and 55 key results. You can find the tracker here. 

What are OKRs?

OKRs stand for Objectives and Key Results. They address the critical facets of any goal worth achieving: the “what” and the “how.” Objectives are what you aim to accomplish. Key Results (KRs) tell us how we’ll get the objectives done.

A well-formed objective is significant, action-oriented, durable, and inspirational. Each objective is supported by carefully chosen and crafted key results. Strong key results are specific, timebound, aggressive (yet realistic) and most of all, measurable and verifiable.

OKRs are not the sum of all tasks. They focus on what’s most important, the handful of essential action steps for a given pursuit. They enable us to track our progress as we go.

To learn more about OKRs, and learn how to set your own, visit whatmatters.com.

What is in a 2040 net zero commitment?

  • Company commitment: Does the company have a public climate commitment to cut emissions in place? This may include net zero, carbon neutral/net zero carbon, carbon reduction, etc.  

  • All GHGs: Does the company’s commitment include all greenhouse gases? 

  • Scopes 1, 2, 3: Does the pledge include a commitment that includes all three scopes?
    • Scope 1: “direct emissions from owned or controlled sources”
    • Scope 2: “indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy consumed by the reporting company”
    • Scope 3: “emissions resulting from value chain activities”

  • Meets IPCC Definition: Does the company’s commitment align to the IPCC’s definition of net-zero?
    • “Net zero emissions are achieved when anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere are balanced by anthropogenic removals over a specified period.” 

  • Removes Outstanding Emissions: Does the company commit to removing all of its annual outstanding greenhouse emissions—those left after it has taken all efforts to cut emissions and drive efficiencies (instead of protection or avoidance based offsets) by the date of their pledge? 

  • Date By: What is the timeline of the company’s most aggressive climate commitment? Do they commit to 2040?

  • Companies marked as having a 2040 net zero commitment fulfill all aforementioned criteria: All GHGs, Removes Residual Emissions, and Scopes 1, 2, 3 criteria

What are good examples of companies clearly communicating their strong commitments?

  • All GHGs: 
    • Example 1: We are commiting to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 across scopes 1, 2, and 3
    • Example 2: Our commitment includes all greenhouse gases.
    • Example 3: We often use the shorthand of carbon, but our targets cover all greenhouse gases in general and are measured in Carbon Dioxide equivalents (CO2e)

  • Removal: 
    • Example 1: To achieve net zero, we are committed to removing our excess emissions through carbon removal.
    • Example 2:  “The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change defines net zero emissions as … For us, this means ensuring that the emissions associated with our business and products are reduced towards zero as far as possible, with residual emissions balanced by carbon removals, thereby achieving a ‘net zero’ position.”

  • Scopes 1,2,3: 
    • Example: We are commiting to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 across scopes 1, 2, and 3

Why do you Track Removing Residual Emissions?

The UN defines net zero emissions as the point when “anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere are balanced by anthropogenic removals over a specified period.” For companies, this generally means that setting a net zero target involves ensuring that they emit as few emissions as possible, with any emissions left over balanced by carbon removals by the time their commitment comes into effect. Carbon can be removed through either natural or technological carbon sequestration. You can read more about carbon removal here. 

How does the Speed & Scale team collect this data?

We source data from publicly available sources such as company websites, SEC filings, ESG reports, and press releases.

How will you publish this data?

This data will be published publicly under Key Result 8.3 on the Speed & Scale website in Q4 2022. Speed & Scale is a platform for action so the data may show up in other venues as well. 

Is a Science Based Target initiative Scope 3 target sufficient?

The current SBTi standard pushes companies to, in the long-term, reduce 90%-95% of their scope 3 emissions and purchase removal offsets for the remaining 5-10%. However, older versions of SBTi targets and their near-term standards do not meet the IPCC criteria for net zero.

What do I do if I see something that’s out of date?

We encourage you to reach out to us at act@speedandscale.com.

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