S1E129: Are climate and environment disclosures helping to cut carbon?

Climate and environment data disclosures are vital. But real
action is needed for cutting emissions and nature protection.


Synopsis: Every first and third Sunday of the month, The Straits
Times analyses the beat of the changing environment, from
biodiversity conservation to climate change.


There’s a saying in sustainability circles: What gets measured,
gets changed. 


And this applies particularly to companies, which are the major
source of carbon emissions heating up the planet. Companies are
also top sources of damage to nature, especially biodiversity
loss. Corporate supply chains, products and services all have a
carbon and nature footprint. So, what companies, as well as
cities and public institutions, decide really matters. 


But until recently, companies were under no obligation to fully
measure and report their impacts and what they were doing about
it. 


Times have changed. A growing number of countries, including
Singapore, are mandating annual corporate climate disclosures.
And likely soon, nature impact disclosures, too. 


One organisation that has been at the forefront of corporate
environmental disclosures is the non-profit CDP. 


But can we really trust the data in corporate climate and
environment disclosures? Who's checking? And are disclosures
really making a difference?


ST's climate change editor David Fogarty hosts Sherry Madera,
chief executive of CDP, which manages an environmental disclosure
system for companies, cities, states and regions.


Highlights of conversation (click/tap above):


2:01 What data is being provided to CDP and is it getting better?


5:20 What percentage of companies, cities and public institutions
that share data with CDP come from Asia?


7:32 How are investors using the data given to CDP?


9:40 What are the main gaps in the data? And where are companies,
cities and others failing to take action?


12:42 How can we really trust the data supplied to CDP? How do
you check it?


16:14 In what ways is data disclosure translating into real
action on the ground? Some examples?


Follow David Fogarty on X: https://str.sg/JLM6


Read his articles: https://str.sg/JLMu


Produced by: David Fogarty (dfogarty@sph.com.sg), Ernest Luis
& Amirul Karim


Edited by: Hadyu Rahim


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