Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Shareholders push Amazon to disclose emissions from value chain

© Shutterstock / Sundry PhotographyPost Thumbnail

Investors Amalgamated Bank and Green Century Capital Management filed a shareholder resolution with Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) asking that the company discloses the emissions from its full value chain, including from all products it sells. 

    • Amalgamated Bank and Green Century Capital Management want Amazon to disclose its Scope 3 emissions.
    • Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer but its full environmental impact is not fully available to the public.
    • Investors are becoming more focused on companies’ environmental impacts and aware of climate risk.  

Activist investors push for change

The two shareholders are asking that Amazon measures and discloses the emissions from its full value chain, including from all products it sells. Amalgamated Bank is being represented by As You Sow, a non-profit foundation focused on shareholder advocacy. The resolution is expected to be voted on at Amazon’s next annual general meeting in May 2023. 

“Amazon has failed to take responsibility for the vast majority of greenhouse gas emissions it enables as the world’s largest online retailer,” said Daniel Stewart, As You Sow’s energy and climate programme manager. “As climate impacts accelerate, it is critical that Amazon work to ensure that the products it sells and the suppliers it works with are transitioning to net zero.” 

Amazon’s environmental targets

The retail giant has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2040, but it only included emissions of its Amazon-branded products, which account for only 1% of product sales. This contrasts with competitors Target (NYSE:TGT) and Walmart (NYSE:WMT) disclose emissions from all their product sales and have adopted Science Based Targets initiative-approved goals for reducing their value-chain emissions.

Amazon’s disclosed absolute emissions have risen around 40% since 2019, instead of being reduced in line with the Paris Agreement goals. Meanwhile the company, a huge conglomerate with global reach, posts continuous growth. In the quarter to September 2022, sales jumped 15% to $127 billion, with profits of $2.9 billion.

“Amazon’s challenges in delivering on its climate commitments reflect the uphill task our economy faces in decarbonizing, but investors expect more from a company of this size and capacity,” commented Ivan Frishberg, Amalgamated Bank’s chief sustainability officer.

Accommodating shareholder demands

The news comes only a month after brick-and-mortar giant Costco (NASDAQ:COST) announced that it would expand its targets to include the Scope 3 emissions of its entire value chain, following shareholder pressure. The decision followed a vote earlier in 2022 whereby 70% of voting shareholders supported a proposal by Green Century Capital Management.

Alongside recognising the importance of respecting global climate and biodiversity goals, investors are becoming increasingly aware of climate risks and how they might affect companies’ performances in the future. In order to make informed decisions about their investees, shareholders need to have a clear picture of their environmental impacts. 

Andrea Ranger, shareholder advocate at Green Century Capital Management, concluded: “Amazon is trying to claim a leadership spot in the corporate race to net-zero emissions but is not disclosing all of its greenhouse gas emissions, leaving investors to wonder whether Amazon is a climate risk rather than a climate leader.”

More from SG Voice

Latest Posts