Carbon Disclosure Project

CDP piggybacked on GRI's concept of environmental disclosure in 2002, focusing on individual companies rather than on nations. At the time CDP had just 35 investors signing its request for climate information and 245 companies responding. According to the organization, as of 2022, companies worth half of global market capitalization disclose through CDP.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdp.net/en/articles/media/nearly-20-000-organizations-disclose-environmental-data-in-record-year-as-world-prepares-for-mandatory-disclosure|title=Nearly 20,000 organizations disclose environmental data in record year as world prepares for mandatory disclosure |website=CDP|language=en|access-date=2023-06-23}}{{cite news |title=ESG Roundup: Market Talk |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/esg-roundup-market-talk-11666195897 |access-date=28 December 2023 |work=Wall Street Journal |date=19 October 2022}}

CDP works with corporations, cities, states, and regions to help develop carbon emissions reductions strategies. The collection of self-reported data from the companies is supported by over 800 institutional investors with about US$100 trillion in assets.{{cite web |title=The Carbon Disclosure Project |url=https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/services/sustainability/publications/carbon-disclosure-project.html |publisher=PWC |accessdate=17 April 2019}}

CDP's climate change program aims to reduce companies' greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change risk. CDP requests information on climate risks and low carbon opportunities from the world's largest companies{{Cite news|date=2021-04-22|title=Shareholders Are Pressing for Climate Risk Disclosures. That's Good for Everyone.|work=Harvard Business Review|url=https://hbr.org/2021/04/shareholders-are-pressing-for-climate-risk-disclosures-thats-good-for-everyone|access-date=2021-04-24|issn=0017-8012}} on behalf of over 800 institutional investor signatories with a combined US$100 trillion in assets.{{cite web |url=https://www.cdp.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/CDP-Investors.aspx |title=Programs - Climate change |accessdate=2015-05-26 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526212355/https://www.cdp.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/CDP-Investors.aspx |archivedate=2015-05-26}}{{primary source inline|date=March 2019}}

The program motivates companies to disclose and reduce their environmental impacts by using the power of investors and companies.

In 2016, some 90 organizations, representing over US$2.5 trillion of purchasing power, requested that their suppliers disclose information on how they are approaching climate and water risks and opportunities. Data was gathered from over 4,000 suppliers worldwide,{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdp.net/CDPResults/CDP-Supply-Chain-Report-2015.pdf|title=CDP}}{{primary source inline|date=March 2019}} who reported over US$12 billion worth of savings from emission reduction activities.{{Cite web|url=http://3blmedia.com/News/Forging-Missing-Link-What-2017-CDP-Supply-Chain-Report-Says-About-Supplier-Engagement|title=Forging the Missing Link: What the 2017 CDP Supply Chain Report Says About Supplier Engagement|last=BSR|website=3blmedia.com|access-date=2017-11-05}}

CDP's forests program has over 290 signatory investors in its network, which collectively represent about US$19 trillion in combined assets. CDP collects information about the four agricultural commodities responsible for most deforestation: timber, palm oil, cattle and soy. CDP's forests program was first set up by the UK Government's Department for International Development via the Global Canopy Programme and the JMG Foundation.{{cite web |url=https://www.cdp.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/forests.aspx |title=Programs - Forests |accessdate=2015-05-26 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403100930/https://www.cdp.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/forests.aspx |archivedate=2015-04-03}}{{primary source inline|date=March 2019}}

CDP Cities{{cite web |url=https://www.cdproject.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/CDP-Cities.aspx |title=Programs - CDP Cities |website=www.cdproject.net |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728181527/https://www.cdproject.net/en-US/Programmes/Pages/CDP-Cities.aspx |archive-date=28 July 2011 |url-status=dead}} provides a platform for cities to measure, manage and disclose their environmental data. More than 500 cities are now measuring and disclosing environmental data annually.{{cite news |title=Half of European companies have no carbon reduction plan despite admitting climate change risks, report finds |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/19/half-of-european-companies-have-no-carbon-reduction-plan-report-finds.html |work=CNBC |date=19 February 2019}} The potential and need for this program is enormous since over 56% of the world's population now live in cities.{{cite web |title=The World Bank: Urban Population |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS |access-date=21 October 2022}} CDP Cities provides a global platform based upon a simple questionnaire that allows city governments to disclose their greenhouse gas emission data publicly. One of the greatest values of the annual report, first released in June 2011, is to city leaders who can identify peers who are addressing similar risks and issues with new and innovative strategies for reducing carbon emissions and for mitigating risk from climate change.

Carbon Action is an investor-led initiative which shows how companies in investment portfolios are managing carbon emissions and energy efficiency.

Over 300 investors with US$25 trillion in assets under management ask the world's highest emitting companies to take three specific actions in response to climate change:

• Make emissions reductions (year-on-year)
• Publicly disclose emission reduction targets
• Make ROI-positive investments in projects

CDP launched a new research series at the beginning of 2015, taking a sector by sector approach.{{Cite web|url=https://www.responsible-investor.com/home/article/cdp_auto_investor_research/|title = Work on auto industry emissions is the first fruit of CDP's new investor research push| date=4 March 2015 }}

CDP recognizes companies with high-quality disclosure in its annual scoring process, with top companies making it onto CDP's so-called A-list.

Scores are calculated according to a standardized method which measures whether and how well a company responds to each question. A company goes through four main steps, starting with disclosure of their current position, moving to awareness which looks at whether a company is conscious of its environmental impact, to management, and finally leadership.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdp.net/en/guidance/guidance-for-companies|title=Guidance for companies |website=CDP|language=en|access-date=2017-11-05}}

A high CDP score is supposed to be indicative of a company's environmental awareness, advanced sustainability governance and leadership to address climate change.

CDP includes three separate legal entities registered in the United Kingdom, Belgium and the United States of America. In the United Kingdom, CDP Worldwide is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales.{{Cite web|title=Search the register of charities|url=https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search?p_p_id=uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet&p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_state=maximized&p_p_mode=view&_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_LIFERAY_SHARED_backToSearch=https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search?p_p_id=uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet&p_p_lifecycle=1&p_p_state=normal&p_p_mode=view&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_cur=1&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_delta=20&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_keywords=1122330&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_orderByCol=&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_orderByType=asc&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_priv_r_p_prevCol=&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_priv_r_p_useSession=true&_uk_gov_ccew_portlet_CharitySearchPortlet_priv_r_p_mvcRenderCommandName=%252Fsearch-results&_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_organisationNumber=4025902|access-date=2020-10-14|website=register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk}} CDP Europe is a registered charity in Brussels, Belgium and Berlin, Germany.{{Cite web|title=Handelsregisterauszug von CDP-Worldwide-Europe-gemeinnuetzige-GmbH aus Berlin (HRB 119156 B)|url=https://www.online-handelsregister.de/handelsregisterauszug/be/Charlottenburg-Berlin/HRB/119156B/CDP-Worldwide-Europe-gemeinnuetzige-GmbH|access-date=2020-10-14|website=www.online-handelsregister.de}} CDP North America, Inc is an independent 501(c)(3) entity based in New York City. The three entities have independent trustee boards.{{Cite web|title=Governance - CDP|url=https://www.cdp.net/en/info/governance|access-date=2020-10-14|website=www.cdp.net}}

CDP's funding comes from a combination of government and philanthropic grants (44.4%) and a mixture of membership fees, administrative fees, sponsorships and data licensing.{{Cite web|title=How we are funded - CDP|url=https://www.cdp.net/en/info/finance/|access-date=2020-10-16|website=www.cdp.net}} In Europe, CDP is around 30% funded by the LIFE programme of the European Commission.{{Cite web|title=LIFE programme 2014-2020 data hub|url=https://life.easme-web.eu/?b=938217272|access-date=2020-10-16|website=life.easme-web.eu}}

Proponents claim that disclosures are helpful for investors,{{Cite web |title=FAQ: Do investors use CDP data? |url=http://www.sri-connect.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=475:faq-do-investors-use-cdp-data&catid=132:take-control-of-sri-communications&Itemid=1112 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218202940/http://www.sri-connect.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=475:faq-do-investors-use-cdp-data&catid=132:take-control-of-sri-communications&Itemid=1112 |archive-date=2015-02-18 |website=sri-connect.com}} corporations, and regulators in making informed decisions on taking action towards a sustainable economy by measuring and understanding their environmental impact and taking steps to address and limit their risk to climate change, deforestation and water security.

• {{cite journal|doi=10.1080/09638180802489121|title=Corporate Responses in an Emerging Climate Regime: The Institutionalization and Commensuration of Carbon Disclosure|journal=European Accounting Review|volume=17|issue=4|pages=719–745|year=2008|last1=Kolk|first1=Ans|last2=Levy|first2=David|last3=Pinkse|first3=Jonatan|s2cid=141216|url=http://dare.uva.nl/personal/pure/en/publications/corporate-responses-in-an-emerging-climate-regime-the-institutionalization-and-commensuration-of-carbon-disclosure(385b0cd4-0123-4ff4-90cf-7b3a2d15c506).html}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1002/smj.796|title=Responding to public and private politics: Corporate disclosure of climate change strategies|journal=Strategic Management Journal|volume=30|issue=11|pages=1157–1178|year=2009|last1=Reid|first1=Erin M.|last2=Toffel|first2=Michael W.|url=http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/09-019.pdf}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1162/GLEP_a_00057|title=The Limits of Carbon Disclosure: Theorizing the Business Case for Investor Environmentalism|journal=Global Environmental Politics|volume=11|issue=2|pages=98–119|year=2011|last1=Harmes|first1=Adam|s2cid=57563666|doi-access=free}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1002/bse.1741|title=Convergence in Environmental Reporting: Assessing the Carbon Disclosure Project|journal=Business Strategy and the Environment|volume=22|issue=5|pages=285–305|year=2013|last1=Matisoff|first1=Daniel C.|last2=Noonan|first2=Douglas S.|last3=O'Brien|first3=John J.|hdl=1805/3573|hdl-access=free}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.2202/1935-1682.2676|title=When Does Institutional Investor Activism Increase Shareholder Value?: The Carbon Disclosure Project|journal=The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy|volume=11|year=2011|last1=Kim|first1=Eun-Hee|last2=Lyon|first2=Thomas|s2cid=38627844}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1002/smj.2127|title=Difference in degrees: CEO characteristics and firm environmental disclosure|journal=Strategic Management Journal|volume=35|issue=5|pages=712–722|year=2014|last1=Lewis|first1=Ben W.|last2=Walls|first2=Judith L.|last3=Dowell|first3=Glen W. S.|hdl=10220/19590 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2331&context=facpub|hdl-access=free}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.2308/accr-50629|title=Firm-Value Effects of Carbon Emissions and Carbon Disclosures|journal=The Accounting Review|volume=89|issue=2|pages=695–724|year=2014|last1=Matsumura|first1=Ella Mae|last2=Prakash|first2=Rachna|last3=Vera-Muñoz|first3=Sandra C.}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1108/SAMPJ-09-2012-0030|title=Disclosure effects, carbon emissions and corporate value|journal=Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal|volume=5|pages=22–45|year=2014|last1=Saka|first1=Chika|last2=Oshika|first2=Tomoki}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1002/bse.1857|title=Adaptation Measures of Energy and Utility Companies to Cope with Water Scarcity Induced by Climate Change|journal=Business Strategy and the Environment|volume=25|pages=54–72|year=2016|last1=Gasbarro|first1=Federica|last2=Rizzi|first2=Francesco|last3=Frey|first3=Marco}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1002/csr.1369|title=Are Corporate Carbon Management Practices Reducing Corporate Carbon Emissions?|journal=Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management|volume=23|issue=5|pages=257–270|year=2016|last1=Doda|first1=Baran|last2=Gennaioli|first2=Caterina|last3=Gouldson|first3=Andy|last4=Grover|first4=David|last5=Sullivan|first5=Rory|url=http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/90725/8/Doda_et_al-2015-Corporate_Social_Responsibility_and_Environmental_Management.pdf}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.ecolecon.2014.11.010|title=Unraveling the effects of environmental outcomes and processes on financial performance: A non-linear approach|journal=Ecological Economics|volume=109|pages=150–160|year=2015|last1=Misani|first1=Nicola|last2=Pogutz|first2=Stefano|s2cid=31107426|url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/60359/1/MPRA_paper_60359.pdf}}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.5890/JEAM.2018.09.001|title=Impact of Climate Change Disclosure on Financial Performance: An Analysis of Indian Firms|journal=Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management|volume=6|issue=3|pages=185–197|year=2018|last1=Kumar|first1=Praveen|last2=Firoz|first2=Mohammad|s2cid=170035443 }}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.1108/MF-03-2018-0108|title=Impact of carbon emissions on cost of debt-evidence from India|journal=Managerial Finance|volume=44|issue=12|pages=1401–1417|year=2018|last1=Kumar|first1=Praveen|last2=Firoz|first2=Mohammad|s2cid=158735930 }}
• {{cite journal|doi=10.5890/JEAM.2019.03.004|title=What Drives the Voluntary Environmental Reporting (VER): An Examination of CDP India Firms|journal=Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management|volume=7|pages=47–59|year=2019|last1=Kumar|first1=Praveen|last2=Firoz|first2=Mohammad|s2cid=243686556 }}
• Kumar, Praveen; Mittal, Amit; Firoz, Mohammad (2020). "Carbon credit issuance: accounting based financial performance". SCMS Journal of Indian Management. 17(2): 111–119.
• {{cite journal|doi=10.14453/aabfj.v13i2.2|title=Do Women on Boards Influence Climate Change Disclosures to CDP? – Evidence from Large Indian Companies|journal=Australasian Accounting, Business and Finance Journal|volume=13|issue=2|pages=5–31|year=2019|last1=Charumathi|first1=B.|last2=Rahman|first2=Habeebu|doi-access=free}}

In 2010, CDP was called "The most powerful green NGO you've never heard of" by the Harvard Business Review.

{{cite journal|url=http://blogs.hbr.org/winston/2010/10/the-most-powerful-green-ngo.html|author=Andrew Winston |date=October 5, 2010|title=The Most Powerful Green NGO You've Never Heard Of|journal=Harvard Business Review |accessdate=Oct 26, 2012}}

In 2012 it won the Zayed Future Energy Prize.ZaYed Future Energy Prize, 2012 Winners {{cite web |url=https://www.zayedfutureenergyprize.com/en/winners-and-runners_up |title=2012 Winner and Runners up –Zayed Future Energy Prize |accessdate=2012-08-27 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615223004/http://www.zayedfutureenergyprize.com/en/winners-and-runners_up |archivedate=2012-06-15 }}

• Carbon accounting
• Carbon footprint
• Global warming
• Greenhouse debt
• Science Based Targets initiative

{{reflist}}

• {{Official|https://www.cdp.net}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20120124122914/https://www.cdproject.net/Documents/CDP-Cities-2011-Report.pdf 2011 (first) annual report from the CDP Cities program]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070821002227/http://www.cdproject.net/ About the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)]

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Category:International environmental organizations

Category:Environmental organisations based in the United Kingdom

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Category:Greenhouse gas inventories