CDP Calls for Evidence-Based Climate Roadmap as COP28 Delivers Global Stocktake

CDP has called on governments at COP28 to use high-quality environmental disclosure data to design an actionable roadmap from the Global Stocktake process, warning that only 24% of disclosing companies are on track to meet their climate targets. The organisation, which is a key data provider to the UNFCCC's Global Climate Action Portal, argues that fragmented and low-quality data remains a primary barrier to effective climate policy.

More than 23,200 companies worth two-thirds of global market capitalisation disclosed through CDP in 2023, including 94% of the FTSE 100 and 86% of the S&P 500. This data has been integrated into the first Global Stocktake process through CDP's participation in UNFCCC technical dialogues and contributions to the UN High Level Champions' Race to Zero Data Explorer. Despite nearly 4,000 companies setting Science Based Targets and more than 70 countries committing to net-zero, CDP analysis shows that real-world progress in reducing emissions remains slow.

CDP's submission to COP28 outlines a four-step corporate climate journey: disclose through CDP, set science-based targets, develop a transition plan, and raise ambition annually. Less than half of disclosing companies report Scope 3 emissions, which typically far exceed direct operational emissions. The organisation warns that without addressing this blind spot and ensuring the Global Stocktake drives inclusion of corporate and subnational data in Biennial Transparency Reports, progress toward the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C goal will remain insufficient.

Beyond COP28, CDP emphasises that governments must immediately begin developing Enhanced Transparency Framework reports that incorporate both corporate and subnational data. The organisation calls for the elimination of fragmentation in global climate data reporting as a prerequisite for cost-effective and equitable decarbonisation. The outcome of COP28's response to the Global Stocktake is expected to set the pace of environmental action across the following decade and inform the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions.

Key figure — Only 24% of disclosing companies are on track to meet their climate targets