• Enhanced Reporting Efficiency: CDP and GRI signed an MoU to streamline environmental reporting, improving access to comparable data.
• Alignment for Clarity: The partnership includes mapping exercises to align CDP’s questionnaire with GRI’s Topic Standards for climate, water, and biodiversity.
• Support for Global Action: This collaboration aids companies in reporting GRI-aligned data, promoting transparency and accountability in environmental impact reporting.

CDP and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) have strengthened their partnership to enhance environmental reporting. This new step, formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed at the COP29 Climate Change Conference in Baku, aims to streamline disclosure processes and boost access to comparable data for companies.

GRI, known for its global standards for reporting environmental, social, and economic impacts, serves over 14,000 organizations. CDP, the independent global disclosure system, engages more than 24,800 companies, covering over two-thirds of the global market capitalization. The collaboration enables companies to report GRI-aligned data through CDP’s annual questionnaire, providing valuable insights to stakeholders and markets.

Cristina Gil White, Interim CEO of GRI, emphasized the significance of this partnership:

“For over 25 years, GRI has been a catalyst for organizations to understand and report their impacts, empowering them to unlock sustainable value and bring about positive change. The synergy with CDP, in terms of our shared ambitions for corporate reporting of environmental impacts to be more comprehensive and effective, is clear to see.”

The agreement includes efforts to align technical aspects, such as mapping CDP’s questionnaire against GRI’s climate, water, and biodiversity standards to enhance interoperability. This alignment is expected to simplify the reporting process for businesses and provide data that supports global environmental strategies.

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Sherry Madera, CEO of CDP, highlighted the impact of the MoU:

“CDP is proud to strengthen our collaboration with GRI. This agreement will enhance the efficiency of environmental reporting, enabling companies to provide more comparable and actionable data. By disclosing through CDP, companies can disclose GRI-aligned data directly to stakeholders and the wider global market. This is a crucial step in accelerating global climate action and ensuring businesses can meet the highest standards of transparency and accountability.”

As discussions at COP29 continue in Baku, this partnership marks a step forward in creating cohesive frameworks for impactful and effective environmental reporting.

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