UN Climate Change has launched a global framework to recognize climate leadership among businesses, financial institutions, cities and other non-State actors, aiming to improve transparency and accountability in efforts to achieve net-zero emissions.
The Net-Zero Recognition Framework (NZRF) was officially launched at the 31st UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) on Thursday, following a year-long pilot phase. The voluntary initiative will allow organizations to publicly disclose their net-zero commitments, the standards underpinning their targets and their progress towards achieving them.
The framework seeks to address growing concerns over the credibility and transparency of net-zero pledges by providing a common platform to assess how organizations are progressing from commitments to implementation.
Through the Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action (NAZCA) portal, UN Climate Change's global platform for non-State climate action established in 2014, participating initiatives and their signatories can make information about their climate commitments and progress publicly accessible.
UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said the framework was moving from its pilot phase to full implementation, providing organizations with an opportunity to demonstrate their climate action more transparently.
“The UN Climate Change Net-Zero Recognition Framework is an important transparency tool and, today, it moves from pilot to implementation. Through our renewed NAZCA portal, companies, financial institutions, cities, regions and more will be able to share their plans and report on progress,” he said.
Eight eligible net-zero initiatives are participating in the framework's initial phase, with 78 signatories opting in during the 2 months leading up to COP31.
The participating organizations include subnational governments representing more than 65 million people, as well as companies and organizations operating across 22 countries. Some of the participating entities have operations in more than 100 countries.
The initiative brings together organizations from diverse sectors, including fashion, wine, sports and small and medium-sized enterprises, alongside subnational governments.
According to UN Climate Change, their participation is expected to make net-zero commitments and the criteria behind them more transparent, accessible and comparable.
The NZRF establishes 5 levels to assess progress along the pathway towards net-zero emissions.
These include public commitments, transition plans, demonstrated progress, achievement of interim targets and the eventual achievement of net-zero goals.
The structure is intended to provide a clearer picture of where participating organizations stand in their climate transition, helping distinguish between initial pledges, concrete implementation and actual results.
Xuehong Wang, transparency director at UN Climate Change, said participating initiatives were demonstrating leadership by making their net-zero journeys more transparent.
“By making their net-zero journeys transparent, the initiatives taking part in the NZRF are showing vital leadership. This is entirely in the interests of those entities, as the global transition gathers pace and scale, as well as vital for overcoming the global climate crisis,” she said.
She added that understanding existing progress was essential to addressing implementation gaps and accelerating climate action.
By publicly sharing their progress, participating initiatives could encourage other organizations to strengthen their climate commitments, improve planning and investment decisions, and establish a stronger evidence base for credible net-zero action, she said.
More organizations encouraged to participate
With the framework now entering full implementation, UN Climate Change has encouraged relevant climate initiatives to apply for recognition as eligible net-zero initiatives.
Signatories of eligible initiatives are also being invited to opt into the framework and disclose their progress through the NAZCA portal.
Eligibility requirements and application details are available at https://unfccc.int/NZRF.
The launch at COP31 comes amid growing international pressure to translate climate pledges into measurable action, particularly as governments and non-State actors face increasing scrutiny over the credibility of their emissions-reduction commitments.
By expanding participation and improving access to information, the NZRF aims to strengthen the role of businesses, financial institutions and subnational governments in accelerating the global transition towards net-zero emissions.