Big Four firm KPMG announced on Monday that it plans to become a net-zero carbon neutral organization by 2030.
The firm has committed to a series of actions, including a 1.5-degree Celsius science-based target focused on a 50 percent reduction of KPMG’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. KPMG firms have also committed to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2022 in its board countries and by 2030 for its wider network. KPMG also plans to offset any remaining greenhouse gas emissions via voluntary carbon offsets.
The firm will track its progress by measuring and reporting data to the Carbon Disclosure Project and the Science Based Targets Initiative.
"We have made real, and valuable, progress in our efforts to help KPMG member firms and clients grow sustainably, but the size of the challenge we all face globally on climate means we must go further," said KPMG International global chairman and CEO Bill Thomas in a statement. "I am pleased that the new commitments we are announcing today will help to accelerate our ambitions to deliver on a more sustainable future, inspiring confidence among our teams and stakeholders and empowering them to change how we shape our future. Our carbon reduction plan will aid not only our own progress towards reducing the effects of the climate on tomorrow’s world, but it will also contribute to our clients’ efforts to reduce their end to end carbon footprint. With this new set of global commitments across KPMG, I am confident that we are making the right decisions today to make a difference tomorrow."
The firm's carbon neutral plan furthers the goal of its Impact program, launched earlier this year. Impact supports KPMG's clients in addressing challenges facing the planet, aiming to achieve progress against the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
“I am delighted to see KPMG enhancing our collective commitment to the global climate agenda by adopting science-based targets with the carbon reduction plan that has been announced today," said Richard Threlfall, global head of KPMG Impact, in a statement. "KPMG shares the same responsibility as the clients we serve, to rapidly reduce and eventually reverse our contribution to global warming. By further extending our own commitments in this space, I believe we are better placed to work and collaborate with clients to help them decarbonize their businesses too.”
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