The Climate Pledge announced that 13 new companies have signed on to the initiative, committing to reach net zero carbon by 2040. The new signatories include Atos, Brooks, Canary Wharf Group, Coca-Cola European Partners, ERM, Groupe SEB France, Harbour Air, ITV, Microsoft, Neste, Rubicon, Unilever, and Vaude.

The Climate Pledge was co-founded by Amazon and climate change-focused organization Global Optimism, calling on signatories to achieve net zero carbon across their businesses 10 years ahead of the Paris Accord’s 2050 target. Launched last year, the initiative has rapidly grown, with the new signatories bringing the pledge’s total to 31 companies. Companies that sign onto the Climate Pledge agree to numerous steps, including:

• Measuring and reporting GHG emissions on a regular basis
• Implementing decarbonization strategies in line with the Paris Agreement through real business changes and innovations. These include efficiency improvements, renewable energy, materials reductions, and other carbon emission elimination strategies
• Neutralizing any remaining emissions with additional, quantifiable, real, permanent, and socially beneficial offsets to achieve net zero annual carbon emissions by 2040  

Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, said:

“Last year, Amazon and Global Optimism co-founded The Climate Pledge to encourage companies to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement ten years early. Today, we have exciting news: 13 more companies, including Unilever and Microsoft, are joining this commitment to confront climate change together and save the planet for future generations. There are now 31 companies from around the world that have signed The Climate Pledge, and collectively we are sending an important signal to the market that there is significant and rapidly growing demand for technologies that can help us build a zero-carbon economy.”

Rebecca Marmot, Unilever Chief Sustainability Officer, said:

“We are delighted to be working with Amazon and Global Optimism on the Climate Pledge. Tackling the climate crisis is of paramount importance. At Unilever we have set ourselves a target of net zero emissions from sourcing to point of sale by 2039 and are investing €1bn into a fund to tackle climate change through our brands. With the rest of the Climate Pledge community, we look forward to raising the bar for ambitious collective action on the most urgent challenge of our time.”

In a separate statement announcing its addition to the pledge, Microsoft Chief Environmental Officer Lucas Joppa wrote:

“As a technology company we feel a particular sense of responsibility because we know that one of the biggest opportunities for organizations of all kinds to reduce their environmental impacts will be the adoption of digital innovations. At Microsoft we want to be the trusted technology partner to help these organizations solve their sustainability challenges. But for that to happen it is critical that the entire private sector makes the climate crisis a priority.

“That’s why, today, Microsoft is signing The Climate Pledge – a commitment to meet Paris Agreement targets 10 years early, by 2040, through comprehensive and measurable interventions on emissions. The pledge fits within Microsoft’s own bold commitments. We’re adding our voice to encourage others to make their own climate commitments, and in doing so, demonstrating that companies from diverse sectors, including direct competitors, can collaborate in tackling climate change.”