Net-zero pledges made by some of the world’s largest corporations will reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by just 36%, according to a new report, far short of the progress required to avert a catastrophic increase in global temperatures.
Galvanized by pressure from investors and growing consumer awareness of extreme weather, companies are coming out almost daily with new promises to curb their impact on the climate and the natural world. But regulations governing sustainability and sustainability claims remain underdeveloped and vary vastly from place to place, making it difficult to separate genuine progress from PR-laden hype.
Carbon Market Watch and the NewClimate Institute looked at 24 of the biggest global companies that have pledged to achieve carbon neutrality and positioned themselves as climate leaders.