A Checklist for Public Scope 3.1 Reporting
Maria Coronado Robles
Before you go public with your reporting, watch this.
Before you go public with your reporting, watch this.
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A Checklist for Public Scope 3.1 Reporting
5 mins 21 secs
Key learning objectives:
Understand what good reporting looks like
Identify realistic levers to influence supplier emissions
Outline how to avoid common mistakes
Overview:
Good reporting is defined by transparency and traceability rather than perfect numbers. Because publishing makes your data public, a credible report must allow any investor or regulator to follow the logic from an invoice to the final footprint. Before committing to public targets, you must perform an operational check to ensure your levers are viable. The most common mistake is overpromising without a roadmap, which leads to greenwashing.
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Summary
What does good, credible reporting look like?
Good reporting is defined by transparency and traceability rather than perfect numbers. Because publishing makes your data public, a credible report must allow any investor or regulator to follow the logic from an invoice to the final footprint. It should clearly state what is included or excluded, the calculation methods used, and the assumptions made regarding data gaps. To ensure quality, use a clarity checklist to verify your boundaries. Be explicit about whether you are covering global operations or specific regions, and explain whether year-on-year changes are due to actual progress or a method upgrade. Showing your work—including your gaps—builds far more trust than a polished number you cannot explain.
How can a company identify realistic levers to influence supplier emissions?
Before committing to public targets, you must perform an operational check to ensure your levers are viable. Meaningful influence requires integrating carbon into core business functions; if carbon impact isn't a factor in vendor selection or price negotiations, nothing will change. You must collaborate internally to verify that reductions are possible.
How can you avoid common reporting and target-setting mistakes?
The most common mistake is overpromising without a roadmap, which leads to greenwashing. To avoid this, ensure your targets are defensible and grounded in reality. Using the SBTi framework helps by requiring a clear baseline, a precise reduction percentage, and a credible pathway to reach it. To protect your reputation, avoid these specific pitfalls:
Good reporting is defined by transparency and traceability rather than perfect numbers. Because publishing makes your data public, a credible report must allow any investor or regulator to follow the logic from an invoice to the final footprint. It should clearly state what is included or excluded, the calculation methods used, and the assumptions made regarding data gaps. To ensure quality, use a clarity checklist to verify your boundaries. Be explicit about whether you are covering global operations or specific regions, and explain whether year-on-year changes are due to actual progress or a method upgrade. Showing your work—including your gaps—builds far more trust than a polished number you cannot explain.
How can a company identify realistic levers to influence supplier emissions?
Before committing to public targets, you must perform an operational check to ensure your levers are viable. Meaningful influence requires integrating carbon into core business functions; if carbon impact isn't a factor in vendor selection or price negotiations, nothing will change. You must collaborate internally to verify that reductions are possible.
How can you avoid common reporting and target-setting mistakes?
The most common mistake is overpromising without a roadmap, which leads to greenwashing. To avoid this, ensure your targets are defensible and grounded in reality. Using the SBTi framework helps by requiring a clear baseline, a precise reduction percentage, and a credible pathway to reach it. To protect your reputation, avoid these specific pitfalls:
- Vague baselines: Always be able to explain the exact starting point of your data.
- Method secrecy: If you used spend-based estimates due to missing supplier data, say so.
- Premature announcements: Build the foundation first; the announcement should always come last.
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Maria Coronado Robles
Maria is Head of Content at xUnlocked, a B Corp best known for its flagship learning platform 'Sustainability Unlocked', serving global clients that include Santander, Airbus and the London Stock Exchange. She brings over a decade of expertise in sustainability, underpinned by a PhD in the field. Prior to joining xUnlocked, Maria led Sustainability Insights and Research within the business intelligence sector, advising corporations on emerging ESG trends, regulatory developments, and strategic sustainability priorities.
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