Supply Change: Take Action On Supply Chains Today

Scope 3 emissions represent the largest source of emissions for most companies. That’s why the SBTi is calling for companies to take action on their supply chains.

Scope 3 is often seen by companies as the most challenging part of their carbon footprint to tackle, but it is also where they can make the biggest impact. While reducing scope 3 emissions is complex, companies have a proven and effective way of doing so: supplier engagement.

Scope 3 emissions are many companies’ biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions: they can be 11.4 times larger than direct emissions on average, according to CDP. But by engaging their suppliers to reduce their emissions through science-based targets, companies can make considerable progress towards addressing their scope 3 emissions.

Influence on suppliers across value chains is already having a demonstrable impact, which is reflected in the growth of science-based targets from the world’s biggest supplying nations. The SBTi’s recent monitoring report found that in 2022, the region with the greatest growth in companies setting science-based targets was Asia, with a 127% increase. Japan had the highest number of companies anywhere in the world setting targets in 2022, while China experienced the steepest growth curve with a 194% increase in the number of businesses with validated targets.

China and Japan are among the top three supplying nations alongside the USA. Our 2022 monitoring report found the USA had the third highest number of companies with science-based commitments and targets validated by the SBTi.

As the Global Stocktake highlights the necessity of dramatically increasing climate action, the SBTi is asking companies to spark a chain reaction in mitigation impact by engaging their suppliers to set science-based targets.

Engage with #SupplyChange

Organizations can support the campaign in range of ways:

Companies with science-based targets

Use your influence to get your suppliers to agree within the next year to set science-based targets. Our Supplier Engagement Guidance gives you a toolkit to do this.

Companies who are already engaging their suppliers through their science-based targets

Encourage other companies to follow your lead by promoting the benefits of supply-chain engagement and sharing what you’re doing in this space. You could do this by:

• Promoting your supplier engagement or relevant scope 3 science-based targets

• Sharing the value of supplier engagement for your business on social media or your website: for example, as testimonials from senior executives or suppliers

• Sharing what has worked well in engaging your suppliers - for example, as a blog or video, or during an event

• Promoting the SBTi’s supplier engagement guidance

Organizations that don’t have validated targets but want to support the campaign

Amplify the campaign across your networks to help #SupplyChange reach as many companies as possible.

Set a supplier engagement target

If you are ready to set a supplier engagement target, view our guidance and then follow the SBTi’s step-by-step process:

• Supplier Engagement Guidance - full guidance

• Supplier Engagement Guidance - executive summary

• Slide deck for presenting science-based targets to your suppliers

• Speaker script for promoting science-based targets at supply chain events