New Climate Counts Scores Reflect Growing Consumer Power

Consumer climate action isn't just about switching to compact fluorescent lightbulbs or buying recycled. While people across the country are taking action to reduce their own carbon footprint, some consumers are using their power to push companies to take action themselves -- and it's paying off.

Today, Climate Counts is releasing its second annual Climate Counts Company Scorecard. We launched our first Scorecard last year with the hope that creating a simple, easy-to-understand ranking of companies would motivate both companies and consumers to step-up their efforts on climate change.

Now, with the release of our second scorecard, we can say that it appears to have worked. The new Scorecard shows a real shift towards greater climate commitment across most industry sectors -- with 84% of scored companies improving their Climate Counts scores. Looking at the companies that showed the most improvement -- Google, Levi Strauss and Anheuser-Busch-shows the diverse kinds of great American companies committed to paying attention to global climate change.

The average overall Climate Counts score jumped 22% to 39 (from 30). That number, 39 out of 100, also shows that there is still a lot of work to do. Please spend some time on our site exploring how companies stack up with each other on climate performance.

We've been excited by the response from consumers all over the world who have told us over and over again how ready they are to align themselves with companies that reflect their own concern for global warming. Consumers have told us -- through their e-mails and calls to us and to the companies we've scored -- that they are ready to vote with their dollars to stimulate meaningful corporate climate action.

We've always believed that a more informed, climate-conscious consumer can play the most important role in driving corporate action in a dynamic marketplace. Indeed, those voices play much louder in corporate boardrooms than you probably ever imagined. When everyday people raise an issue with companies in a clear way, those companies pay attention. We know because it's reflected in our new scores.

Most companies have a long way to go, but it's a promising start.

Comments

[PhillyQuaker]

"Great tits cope well with warming"
I didn't say that, the BBC news did!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7390109.stm

[shrugged]

So what will we do about global cooling now that the cycle 24 sunspots have failed to materialize. Man made stopping of sunspots? The temperatures have plummeted in the last 16 months. The hedgers are now saying we will experience 20 years of cooling?

[KillTheMessenger]

Of course some American companies look good... because you did not compare them to European companies.

[MaxMarginal]

That's a good point. Is there a site that rates European companies?

[SpencerKent]

Im amazed by Google. Between their environmental awareness and iGoogle, they may just be the greatest company on the web...in the world.

[MaxMarginal]

And google.org, and the fact that my blackberry calendar syncs with my google calendar without my doing anything.

[bluesnot]

That's great. Thanks for the link. Right now, since I've stopped using plastic grocery bags, I've also moved away from groceries packaged in plastic. That doesn't leave much! It almost seems like the grocery store sells more plastic than food. Manufacturers have their work cut out for themselves.

[MaxMarginal]

Yeah. Kudos to Whole Foods for getting rid of plastic bags on Earth Day.

[MaxMarginal]

Just looked over at the scores. Apple, apple apple... it's 'cause all their parts are manufactured by polluter-factories in China, right?

[fighouse]

Its great to see some accountability with these large companies, thanks for creating this system which empowers consumers.

hope to see the "vote with dollars" system benefit us all.

[sheila]

uh, what scores are you looking at? they gave apple an 11/100, by FAR one of the lowest scores for electronics or anything else. IBM, by contrast got a 77.