Climate change has become an issue for the financial markets. Investors as well as corporate clients increasingly consider the climate protection activities of companies as part of their investment decision. However, how can investors or customers know how effective the ambitions and actions of the respective companies actually are? The CDP (formerly “Carbon Disclosure Project”) is a non-profit organization that takes a close look at the climate protection targets and activities of companies worldwide. Deutsche Telekom has also passed the critical test in 2021 and, as a result, has made it onto the well-known organization’s Climate A list for the sixth time in a row.h time in a row.
In 2021, over 13,000 companies answered the call from investors and corporate customers and gave the CDP data and facts regarding their climate-relevant activities as well as their efforts in the fight against climate change. And now the result is in: Deutsche Telekom has once again been recognized for its commitment to the fight against climate change and is one of 200 companies worldwide to have made the list. “Even today, climate change can significantly impact the financial statements and investments of companies. The impacts can range from losses incurred as a result of extreme weather events such as floodings to business opportunities created by products and solutions that help customers to reduce emissions or adapt to climate change for instance. Only environmentally friendly companies will be able to remain resilient and competitive for the long-term,” explains Birgit Klesper, Senior Vice President for Group Corporate Responsibility at Deutsche Telekom AG. “We are really delighted about this recognition. At the same time, being on the Climate A list is also a motivation for us as the fight against climate change is a very real and urgent task that we must not lose sight of alongside the still acute coronavirus crisis.”
Reducing emissions, minimizing climate risks, and paving the way towards a low-carbon society: this demand is our mission in the Group. Deutsche Telekom was one of the first DAX Groups to set itself science-based climate targets thereby aligning the Group’s activities towards compliance with the Paris Agreement aimed at restricting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. To achieve this, the Group has committed to become climate-neutral regarding its own emissions by 2025. By 2040 at the latest, the requirement of climate neutrality will then apply to the entire value chain from production to customer use. An important step on this path to carbon neutrality, the company has only procured green energy worldwide already this year. The Group had tightened the climate protection targets only this year and brought the deadline for climate neutrality forward by ten years.
This increases the focus on emissions from the supply chain and on those that are generated when our products and solutions are used. To bring these emissions down, Deutsche Telekom implements cooperations with suppliers, for example through the CDP supply program and is offering more and more environmentally-friendly solutions to its customers.
What is CDP?
In its investors' program, CDP, an independent organization (formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project) evaluates companies’ commitment to protecting the climate and the environment every year: more than 13,000 companies took part in 2021 and 200 managed it onto the Climate A list. The list singles out companies that are transparent with regard to climate protection and are aware of their responsibility, adopt and monitor suitable measures, as well as assume a leading role with regard to this issue. In addition to the climate ranking, the CDP also publishes rankings on the use of water and forests. As a leading ranking in the climate protection area, CDP’s evaluations are also used in other important sustainability ratings, where they affect the evaluations of Deutsche Telekom that investors see.
