The Net-Zero Data Public Utility is readying a unified, global, and free climate data repository.
Grygo is the chief content officer for FTF & FTF News.
Inadvertently, I have stumbled upon another climate-related bit of news.
This time it’s about the Net-Zero Data Public Utility (NZDPU), described as “a unified, global, open climate data repository” whose information can be used by many sectors including financial services.
A variety of securities firms would welcome free, reliable data about the climate change efforts of companies that they are investing in or want to. Such data could become essential for many investment strategies.
The NZDPU can trace its history to June 2022 when French President Emmanuel Macron and the United Nations Special Envoy for Climate Ambition and Solutions Michael R. Bloomberg launched the Climate Data Steering Committee (CDSC), which supports the climate objectives of the U.N.
In November 2022, the CDSC published recommendations for the development of the climate-focused repository, according to the NZDPU website. The utility “is designed to be integrated with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change’s Global Climate Action Portal.” The CDSC will guide NZDPU’s development “and will consider further recommendations for enhancements going forward.”
The NZDPU platform got its official debut via a prototype demonstration at the controversial climate summit COP28 underway in Dubai until Dec. 12.
Before the demo, the WSJPro group at The Wall Street Journal reported that it “got an exclusive look at the NZDPU proof of concept” and describes the online platform as offering “detailed carbon footprint and emission reduction targets for nearly 400 companies by year and over time. It also allows users to create custom tables comparing across companies and to download the information. A public consultation on the tool will be open until March 1, 2024.”
In addition, Gabriel Presler, global head of enterprise sustainability for Morningstar, provides more details about the new platform in a recent online piece for Morningstar.
“The NZDPU prototype initially includes Scope 1-3 greenhouse gas emissions data and reduction targets for approximately 400 companies based on their CDP [formerly Carbon Disclosure Project] disclosure. What’s more, the platform provides jargon-free language and definitions for each of the data points it surfaces to better arm investors and the public with information for decision-making,” Presler says. “I hope you will join members of the public in providing feedback on the proof of concept via NZDPU.com and participate in a 90-day public consultation process and survey.”
In particular, Presler says NZDPU has made Morningstar ”optimistic about the debut of the … first global, centralized database containing private sector climate data, which is critical for the net-zero transition. It’s free and available to all.”
Presler adds that Morningstar “joined this international industry initiative as an active member and technical advisor last year. And on Saturday [December 2] at COP28, the coalition, including Climate Data Steering Committee Chair Mary Schapiro,” Macron, and Bloomberg unveiled the prototype.
Presler acknowledges that “addressing climate change is a tall order, as countless climate meetings and summits including COP28 will attest. By many accounts, progress has been too slow, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t bright spots.”
She adds that the platform will be part of a longer process.
“We have a long way to go; the technology, policy, and investment mix will surely change over the next decade. But it will take accessible, high-quality, and comparable climate data to achieve a global net-zero economy, and we can all be encouraged by the progress in data quality and access that the NZDPU represents. We are excited to continue this work to make climate data accessible to all,” Presler says.
More about the utility can be found here: https://nzdpu.com/home
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