We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Open PDF file of Data Source
Climate Lobbying Overview: Coles Group appears to have communicated positive top-line positions on climate policy. However, at a more detailed level, despite stating that it engages on policy that affect its business, it has not disclosed details on its positions and engagement towards any specific policy item or area. Regarding energy transition, it also only stated broad support for a “lower-carbon economy,” without specifying the pace and extent of the transition.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Coles Group has acknowledged some of the science of climate change in its 2020 Sustainability Report. In its 2021 Sustainability Strategy, it backed the Paris Agreement and the goals of limiting “global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.” In its 2020 Annual Report, Coles recognized the risk of climate change regulations such as carbon pricing, although it does not take a clear position on the need for government policy to respond to climate change.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: Coles Group has stated it engages with policymakers on policy that could affect its business in its 2020 Sustainability Report. However, as of September 2021, the company does not appear to have disclosed its engagement and positions on any climate-relevant regulations.
Positioning on Energy Transition: In its 2020 Annual Report, Coles Group stated that it supported the transition to a “lower-carbon economy.” Beyond this, the company does not seem to have declared more detailed positions regarding energy transition.
Industry Association Governance: Coles Group has made a limited disclosure on its industry association membership in its 2020 Sustainability Report, which lacks details on its activities within the associations and their policy position alignment. Coles Group is a member of the Business Council of Australia, which has lobbied negatively on Australian climate change policy. As of September 2021, Coles Group has not provided an updated disclosure regarding its industry association governance.