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Are top brands doing all they can to fight climate change?

You might think that a company setting ambitious goals to shrink its carbon footprint is worth celebrating. So do we.

But, by themselves, corporate goals aren’t enough to bend the curve on global emissions — or to protect our communities and the economy from the impacts of climate change.

Only well-designed public policy can deliver emissions reductions at the speed and scale needed to limit the worst of climate change. That’s why it’s so important that companies advocate for such policy.

Fred Krupp

The most powerful tool that companies have to fight climate change is their political influence.

— Fred Krupp, EDF President

See what some top brands are doing

Customers and employees today want the full story. They want companies to disclose their climate lobbying activities and prove they’re fighting climate change with everything they’ve got. That means making climate policy advocacy a top priority.

To track whether companies are backing up commitments with action, we created the Climate Authenticity Meter. It shows which recent business actions support — or obstruct — progress on climate policy, and rates each action.

Here are a few examples of brands whose actions got our highest rating:

  • Executives from three major automakers — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler) — stood with President Biden and union leaders in the White House as Biden announced historic goals to ensure half of new cars sold in the United States emit zero emissions by 2030.
  • More than 30 companies — including McDonald’s, Tyson, Nestlé, Pepsi and Unilever, and Amazon through the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance trade association — called on Congress to support clean energy in COVID-19 recovery and infrastructure spending.
  • CEOs from the CEO Climate Dialogue, a group of 21 major corporations and four environmental groups, met with federal lawmakers to develop bipartisan policy to significantly reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.

How to activate your own employer

Because businesses want to be seen walking the walk on climate — and need to attract and retain top talent — your voice carries more weight now than ever, especially when you’re able to take collective action.

Here are some excellent resources we recommend to get you started: