When Amazon and Global Optimism launched The Climate Pledge in September 2019, we envisioned a future in which the private sector would play a key role in leading the charge against climate change, taking bold and ambitious action to revolutionize industries around the world.
In just five years, hundreds of companies have answered the call. Over 525 signatories across 59 industries and 45 countries have committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 through regular reporting, carbon elimination, and credible offsets. Once The Climate Pledge signatories reach net-zero carbon, BRODIE conservatively estimates that the greenhouse gases avoided would equate to more than 2.5 billion metric tons (2.5 metric gigatons) of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually. This is roughly equivalent to a third of the carbon absorbed by the world’s forests each year.
We’ve made significant progress. Of those analyzed by BRODIE, The Climate Pledge signatory companies are collectively decarbonizing faster than other companies reporting to CDP. They're also sending powerful signals that are accelerating the transition to a net-zero carbon economy. Importantly, the cascading benefits of this collective action are encouraging others to collaborate and follow suit.
Instead of accepting the worst consequences of climate change, signatories of the Pledge have committed to addressing the issue face on. The impact of their efforts in five short years has pushed dozens of industries toward change. But it’s only the beginning. Even with the momentum created by so many corporations, community leaders, and governments, the work ahead will be hard, imperfect, and suffer setbacks. We’re not here because any of this is easy; we’re here because we value learning from each other and striving for change as part of a community of action.
This update celebrates The Climate Pledge’s successes so far. It’s also a reminder that despite everything we’ve accomplished, there’s still hard work ahead. We will continue to be inspired by the achievements of the Pledge signatories and committed to pursuing innovative pathways toward shared objectives, even when the right approaches aren’t always immediately at hand.
One community can make a world of difference. Thank you to The Climate Pledge signatories for recognizing this is no time for business as usual.
– Kara Hurst, Chief Sustainability Officer, Amazon & Christiana Figueres, Founding Partner, Global Optimism and Former Executive Secretary, UN Convention on Climate Change
