GM Gets Perfect Climate Change Disclosure Score from @CDP

We know addressing climate change makes business sense. Further proof can be found in CDP rankings. Each year CDP scores companies for the quality of climate change-related information they disclose to investors and the global marketplace. If the company is a leader, they get on the S&P Climate Disclosure Leadership Index.

Thousands of companies submit climate disclosures to CDP at the request of 822 investors representing $95 trillion in assets.

For three years running, GM earned a perfect score, sending a clear message to investors: We’re mitigating our climate risk, we’re taking a leadership role in redefining personal mobility given shifting consumer and societal trends, and we’re increasing the resilience of our company as a result.

This is especially significant as roughly 20 percent of our top institutional investors are CDP members.  It tells them we’re prepared for changing market demands and regulations.

This news comes three weeks ahead of COP21, the UN climate change conference, when national leaders meet to agree a global deal to reduce carbon emissions and limit temperature warming.

“As the world looks beyond the Paris climate change negotiations and prepares for a low carbon future, reliable information about how companies are responding to the transition will be ever more valuable,” said Paul Dickinson, executive chairman and co-founder of CDP. “For this reason we congratulate those businesses that have achieved a position on CDP’s Climate Disclosure Leadership Index.”

We believe addressing climate change will strengthen our company and make us more competitive. We are a Ceres BICEP Climate Declaration signatory since 2013 and just a couple of months ago we were among the first 13 companies to sign the White House American Business Act on Climate Pledge demonstrating commitment to climate action and support for a strong Paris climate negotiations outcome.

CDP isn’t the only organization recognizing our work to mitigate our climate impacts. For the third straight year, we received an EPA ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence award, the organization’s highest level of recognition for corporate energy management.  The agency also recognized us for raising climate change awareness.

We will continue to seek out sustainability opportunities that collectively drive economic, environmental and social improvements. Whether it’s co-creating a self-sustaining clean-energy conversation with students and climate experts via #CleanEnergyU, partnering with other organizations to make procuring renewable energy easier for companies, or helping dealerships share green best practices in communities across the U.S., we believe in the power of collaboration to make a difference.

This CDP ranking comes on the heels of GM’s debut on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, the leading global benchmark for corporate sustainability. We were the only automaker to make the list in North America, receiving top scores in climate strategy and operational eco-efficiency, and a perfect score in environmental policy and management. Getting on that list sends a similar message that we’re equipped for long-term success and, as a result, our stock can be actively purchased based on our sustainability performance. 

Driving sustainability throughout our global operations can unlock invaluable business opportunity.