From Ambition to Action: SBTi Releases Their New Strategy

The Science Based Targets initiative has been a pioneer for corporate climate action for a decade. Every initiative and institution in the climate space fulfills its own clear role, addressing a gap in climate action. For instance, the IPCC made climate science actionable for policymakers and governments, the UNFCCC and COP addressed a gap in international climate politics by providing a framework for multilateral action, the GHG Protocol allowed emissions to be quantified for organisations - and many other initiatives each filled a gap at a time where the need appeared. Even CAFA was born that way, addressing a gap in support for the membership sector.

The Science Based Targets initiative was no different - at a time where global momentum was building in 2015 around limiting global warming to 1.5°C, SBTi was founded to ensure that the reduction targets companies set were in line with that objective.

Just over 10 years later, SBTi now represents a network of more than 10,000 companies who have set or committed to set science based targets, generating considerable momentum for corporate climate action.

However, SBTi are much more than a target setting organisation. Having produced the Corporate Net-Zero Standard as well as contributed to, if not spearheaded work on Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (an alternative to offsets where climate finance is funneled to projects without it being treated as compensation for one's emissions as is the case for offsets), they have gained recognition among climate professionals and corporates alike as a leader in the transition - a leadership position which is illustrated too by their wealth of sector guidance.

The excellence inspired by SBTi has rippled across the different stages of corporate climate action by the sheer weight of their know-how and depth of their standards. While the wider perception of SBTi has naturally centred on targets, which makes sense given their founding purpose, their work has grown significantly to encompass much more, from the Corporate Net-Zero Standard to sector guidance and BVCM.

Climate action between 2015-2025 rightly focused on building ambition and alignment - the essential foundation for what comes next. Recently however, the tide has started shifting from mobilisation to implementation, as exemplified by COP30 last November which was widely labeled the "implementation" COP - partly due to the backlash from the US administration on climate and ESG action, as well as tightening regulation on green claims, but likely also due to an increasing hunger for action.

Organisations across the world are looking for results rather than only commitments and pledges - the latter still do have a role to play for momentum building, but the moment is now for translating that momentum into something that can protect operations and livelihoods: emission cuts. Where ambition provides clarity and alignment, results are what truly mitigates environmental damage.

This is why the news about the SBTi's 2026-2030 strategy seems very promising. Released on the 21st of May, it aims at moving beyond ambition and enabling transformation. The new strategy recognises how SBTi's standards and guidance intersect with policy engagement on one hand, which we know is essential to bring down barriers to decarbonisation (cost, technology, infrastructure, economic incentives), and with technological development on the other.

The strategy also builds on the Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2 which is currently being finalised, by including "a process for assessing progress in reducing emissions, including how any gaps between performance and targets should be addressed". The V2 also recognises the existence of internal and external barriers to decarbonisation, that can be addressed at the system or sector level - which is very encouraging for hard-to-abate sectors or sectors highly dependent on infrastructure, skills or economic incentives to successfully decarbonise. De facto rather than explicitly, associations taking climate leadership are therefore reinforced as systemic and sector enablers by this simple acknowledgement of barriers beyond the business's sole grasp.

Additionally, companies have been asking SBTi for more accountability from the corporate world on actual progress against targets. Following this ask, SBTi has decided to produce "private benchmarking, available to companies, which they can use to inform and accelerate decisions about strategic focus; and public system-level assessments, which will activate the policy pathway [...], providing a route for companies to escalate barriers that require policy innovation, on which our partner organizations can work with governments to address."

Companies will therefore be able to refer to SBTi for data on company progress and system level barriers.

This is truly exciting, as CAFA have similarly developed complementary tools for sector-wide data insights for associations - these developments from both our organisations and many others in the climate landscape align with the wider trend from mobilisation to action, and the growing recognition for systemic barriers that can be addressed through policy engagement and cross-sector coordination. Promising times!

With all of that said, today is World Biodiversity Day - while it's quite literally vital to decarbonise as fast as possible, let's not forget about all the great work being done by NGOs, initiatives and institutions globally for biodiversity, such as the IPBES on science, the SBTN and ISO for standards, and climate activist initiatives such as Justice Pour Le Vivant who are currently holding governments accountable for the protection of biodiversity and the systems we depend on for food and water.

Climate Action for Associations (CAFA) is the free resource and network dedicated to net zero and sustainability for the membership sector. By joining CAFA, membership organisations can access the support and guidance needed to take climate action internally and with their members. Join CAFA today or reach out to get support on science alignment, targets and decarbonisation in your sector.