The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu The leading online blog in the fields of corporate governance and financial regulation. Thu, 23 Jul 2026 11:32:28 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.8 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cropped-photography-4-e1706898544564-1-32x32.png Emission Impossible: Corporate Climate Goals Moving from Adoption to Execution – The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu 32 32 Emission Impossible: Corporate Climate Goals Moving from Adoption to Execution https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2026/07/23/emission-impossible-corporate-climate-goals-moving-from-adoption-to-execution/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=emission-impossible-corporate-climate-goals-moving-from-adoption-to-execution https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2026/07/23/emission-impossible-corporate-climate-goals-moving-from-adoption-to-execution/#respond Thu, 23 Jul 2026 11:32:28 +0000 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/?p=182757?d=20260722161300EDT Posted by Matteo Tonello, The Conference Board, Inc, on Thursday, July 23, 2026
Editor's Note:

Matteo Tonello is the Head of Data Benchmarking and Analytics at The Conference Board, Inc. This post is based on a report developed by The Conference Board in partnership with ESGAUGE and authored by Andrew Jones, Principal Researcher, Governance & Sustainability Center at The Conference Board.

This report draws on executive insights and disclosure data from US public companies to assess where corporate climate targets are credible, where emissions trends are off track, and what business leaders should do to govern, track, and communicate climate commitments more effectively.

Trusted Insights for What’s Ahead®

  • Setting climate goals is a mainstream large-company practice. Some 84% of S&P 500 companies disclosed a climate target in 2025, compared with 34% of the Russell 3000.
  • Many climate targets are at risk. About 58% of S&P 500 companies with Scope 1 (direct emissions from operations) targets and 62% with Scope 3 (indirect value chain emissions) targets have reported flat or rising emissions since 2021, while only 24% of polled sustainability leaders are fully confident in their goals.
  • Scope 1 remains the hardest operational challenge. Median Scope 1 emissions fell 41% across the Russell 3000 from 2021 to 2025 but were flat among S&P 500 companies, and utilities saw emissions rise in 2025 as power demand increased.

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