Climate Contribution Framework

The Climate Contribution Framework methodology

The Climate Contribution Framework (CCF) does not replace existing methodologies. It builds on them — connecting heterogeneous scores, ratings, and certifications into a single, fair, and comparable indicator of corporate contribution to global net zero.

The core equation

Three pillars. One equation. Sector-adjusted results.

Three non-substitutable pillars, sector-weighted and combined into a single score. No pillar compensates for others. The sum α + β + γ represents the sector's overall climate materiality — between 10 and 100.

Raw Contribution

Each pillar score (A, B, C) is weighted by its sectoral coefficient and summed: A×α + B×β + C×γ. This raw score reflects the company's actual climate actions, adjusted for what matters most in its industry—emissions reduction, climate solutions, or climate financing.

Contribution Potential

The sum of sector-specific weightings (α + β + γ), ranging from 10 to 100, indicates a company's maximum climate materiality. A potential of 96 means the company operates in sectors where almost all contribution pillars are critical to achieving Global Net Zero.


Contribution Score

The ratio of Raw Contribution to Contribution Potential reveals how effectively a company delivers on its climate responsibility. A 92% score means the company is achieving 92% of its maximum possible contribution given its sector's climate materiality.

This architecture ensures that companies are evaluated on the most material levers for their business model, while preserving cross-sector comparability.

The three pillars

How the analysis works

Pillar A

Reduction

Carbon footprint reduction

Pillar A evaluates companies' transition plans across their operations, their value chain, and their policy:

past and current performance

ambition and targets

execution plans

supplier and customer engagement

governance

alignment with public policies

Each is weighted and aggregated into a single pillar score.

Pillar B

Solutions

Climate solutions

Pillar B recognizes companies whose products and services enable avoided emissions or generate negative emissions outside their value chain. It evaluates:

current green revenue

future green revenue ambition

scale of impact through avoided/induced emissions ratio

This pillar connects green revenue ambition with measurable climate mitigation impact.

Pillar B

Finance

Climate finance

Pillar C values voluntary financial contributions to climate mitigation — particularly those made outside the company's value chain. It covers a broad spectrum of instruments, including:

mitigation outcomes in tonnes

climate finance beyond tonnes

investments with secondary climate benefits

Only voluntary contributions are included, and strict exclusions prevent double counting with operational decarbonization.

How scoring works

From external frameworks to comparable scores.

01

Assessment

Each sub-pillar is first assessed from recognized external framework results.

02

Translation

The Translation Kit is a set of standardized rules designed to convert any assessment framework output into a normalized score on a 0–100 scale.

03

Adjustment

They are then adjusted with two credibility factors: The assessment framework score and the assessment quality score.

This mechanism ensures that companies are rewarded not only for their performance, but also for the rigor with which that performance is assessed. If multiple frameworks apply to the same dimension, the highest score is retained — being assessed multiple times is therefore always beneficial.

Sector weighting

Ensuring fairness across sectors.

Different sectors play fundamentally distinct roles in the climate transition. The CCF derives specific sector coefficients for each pillar from activity classifications covering over 100 sub-sectors. This approach prioritizes the most assessment on the most material levers and prevents any compensation between structurally different pillars.

Emissions intensity

The weight of the Reduction pillar is correlated to the sector's carbon intensity across Scopes 1, 2, and 3. The more a sector emits, the more material the decarbonization of its operations.

Capacity to deploy solutions

The weight of the Solutions pillar reflects the sector's technological potential to produce goods or services enabling avoided emissions by other actors. A battery manufacturer has a structurally higher β than a service provider.

Financial strength

The weight of the Finance pillar integrates sector net margins and historical responsibility. It reflects the capacity, and obligation, to contribute financially to mitigation beyond one's own value chain.

This approach: focuses assessment on the most material levers for each sector, creates a level playing field across industries, and prevents compensation between structurally different pillars.

Implementation tools

Making the framework operational for all companies.

The two tools ensuring broad adoption.

Translation Kit

A conversion system that transforms heterogeneous results (numerical scores, levels, labels, ratios) into normalized results from 0 to 100. It makes assessments from very different frameworks directly comparable.

CCF Simplified Approach

A streamlined methodology designed to assess climate performance in companies that lack external assessments on one or more sub-pillars within Pillar A, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Your Scorecard

Three clear results: Potential, actual, and performance

This structure answers both "What could you do?" and "What are you doing?", creating accountability while recognizing the diversity of pathways. The result: actionable insights, clear signals on areas where companies should invest and where capital can generate maximum impact.

01

Contribution Potential

Maximum achievable contribution based on the sector's climate role

02

Actual Contribution

Current performance across all three pillars

03

Contribution Performance

Ratio between actual contribution and contribution potential

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Who these results are for

Actionable data for markets and decision-makers.

The CCF was designed to produce actionable results, not just scores. Each audience has a distinct use angle, adapted to their decision needs.

Companies

To plan, report, and prioritize high-contribution impact actions. The CCF scorecard identifies the least exploited levers and directs efforts toward what matters most for the sector.

Investors

To identify real climate leaders and allocate capital accordingly. The CCF's cross-sector comparability enables robust portfolio analysis, beyond footprint reduction trajectories alone.

Public decision-makers and NGOs

To complement reporting obligations with an independent, robust, and comparable reference. The CCF provides an aggregated view of real corporate climate action, at the sector or economy level.

Want to value your role in the transition to net zero?

Start the 3-minute self-assessment or download the White Paper to explore the methodology in detail.

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