Impact Points:

• Global Data Accessibility: Core climate data from over 10,000 companies, representing more than 50% of global market capitalization, will be made freely available to the public.
• Streamlined Reporting: The partnership aims to simplify corporate climate reporting, reducing duplication and increasing access to consistent, comparable data worldwide.
• Advancing Climate Goals: By openly sharing crucial climate transition-related data, the collaboration supports global efforts to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

The Net-Zero Data Public Utility (NZDPU) and CDP, the global environmental disclosure system, have announced a transformative expansion of their partnership to make vital climate data openly accessible to all. This collaboration marks a significant step in democratizing access to climate information, essential for achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Making Climate Data Publicly Available

For the first time, core climate data from more than 10,000 companies—accounting for over 50% of global market capitalization—will be publicly available for free through the NZDPU. This includes crucial information such as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, emissions reduction targets, and detailed sector-specific data.

Sherry Madera, CEO of CDP, expressed the significance of this move: “CDP is proud to advance our partnership with the NZDPU and to serve as its foundational global data provider. Our data has shaped markets for nearly 25 years, but ensuring it is freely available for public good is critical, open to access for any user—from consumer to government—to drive positive decisions for our planet.”

Streamlining Reporting and Increasing Access

The enhanced partnership aims to streamline corporate climate reporting by avoiding duplication and providing a consistent, comparable set of data globally. Companies can disclose through CDP to provide core climate data to the NZDPU, simplifying the reporting process and reducing the burden on organizations.

Mary Schapiro, Chair of the Climate Data Steering Committee (CDSC), highlighted the importance of this collaboration: “This expanded collaboration between CDP and the NZDPU is a pivotal step towards realizing the CDSC’s vision to build connectivity between global stakeholders by providing access to high-quality, comparable climate-transition data.”

Supporting Global Climate Goals

By making this data openly accessible, the partnership supports the objectives of the Paris Agreement by enabling companies, regulators, and other stakeholders to more accurately assess progress toward climate goals.

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Michael R. Bloomberg, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions, commented: “To accelerate the pace of clean energy investment, we need more reliable and accurate climate data. This new partnership will get us one step closer to a critical goal: making sure comparable corporate climate data is accessible to everyone for free.”

Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, added: “Access to climate data in a centralized, comparable format is increasingly important as more jurisdictions implement varying reporting standards. The partnership between CDP and the NZDPU to expand the corporate data freely available for the public good will allow companies and regulators to more accurately assess not only their own progress toward meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement throughout their value chain, but also the progress of those they want to do business with.”

Alignment with Global Reporting Standards

CDP’s platform is aligned with key climate reporting standards, including the ISSB climate standard (IFRS S2), the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and the TNFD disclosure recommendations. This ensures that the data accessible through the NZDPU is relevant and aligned with the most important disclosure frameworks.

Conclusion

The expanded partnership between CDP and the NZDPU represents a significant advancement in the global effort to combat climate change. By providing open access to crucial climate data, the collaboration empowers stakeholders worldwide to make informed decisions and take decisive action toward a sustainable future. This initiative not only enhances transparency but also fosters collaboration across sectors, driving collective progress in meeting the urgent challenges posed by climate change.