SBTi Redesigns Target Dashboard to Improve Data Access and Usability

The Science Based Targets initiative is overhauling its publicly accessible company target dashboard to address usability shortcomings identified by regular users, including the absence of machine-readable data downloads. A beta version of the redesigned dashboard was launched for user testing on 5 May 2023.

The SBTi's target dashboard — also known as the Companies Taking Action table — lists companies with approved targets, updated targets and publicly committed decarbonisation plans. A September 2022 user survey found that 85% of respondents considered the data important or extremely important to their work. However, users flagged that the existing data download was not in a machine-readable format and that the dashboard design was difficult to navigate. The updated version introduces a simplified interface, machine-readable data downloads listing each company's active targets and historical commitments, and more granular data on individual targets.

The dashboard serves as a key accountability and transparency mechanism for investors, shareholders, academics, media, campaign organisations and supply chain actors seeking to assess corporate decarbonisation progress. The addition of machine-readable downloads directly addresses the needs of analytical users — such as researchers and ESG data providers — who need to process large datasets programmatically. The redesign also introduces the ability to link directly to individual company entries, enabling more targeted referencing and comparison across the dashboard.

The SBTi has flagged further planned improvements beyond this initial rollout, including the addition of data indicating which version of SBTi criteria each target was validated against. Future updates are also planned to align the dashboard with the Net Zero Data Public Utility, expected in the second half of 2023. Development is proceeding in phases to bring updates to users quickly and gather iterative feedback. The SBTi has committed to providing at least one month's notice before implementing planned changes to allow users and organisations to adjust their data processes accordingly.

Key figure — 85% of survey respondents rated SBTi dashboard data as important or extremely important