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Guide · For procurement teams

Supplier GHG emissions data: where to start

GHG Emissions Data Management is the Climate subtopic of the UN Global Compact Sustainable Procurement Framework that most buyers start with. Its Initial actions come down to one job: get a first, consistent Scope 1 and 2 baseline from the suppliers that matter. Here is how, stage by stage.

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An independent guide. EcoDiligence is not affiliated with or endorsed by the UN Global Compact, and using EcoDiligence does not mean you have implemented the framework. Part of our guide to the framework.

The short version
  • Initial level is about getting suppliers to measure and disclose at all: Scope 1 and 2, a stated method, one format.
  • Scope 3 from suppliers, product footprints and primary data are Intermediate. Verification and API data exchange are Advanced.
  • At Initial level, the useful measure is how many suppliers disclosed, not how precise the numbers are.

1. Strategy & Planning: know where to ask

The Initial assessment is your own work, not your suppliers': a spend-based Scope 3 screening. Map purchasing spend to Scope 3 categories, apply industry-average emission factors from a recognised database, and rank the top categories. That ranking tells you which suppliers to ask first. If Scope 3 is new to your team, the Scope 3 guide covers the basics.

Two policy decisions follow. First, the ask itself: suppliers in the first group calculate and report Scope 1 and 2. Second, a target that is about disclosure, not reduction: what share of that group should be reporting by when.

2. Supplier Selection: add the questions to new RFPs

For new sourcing, the Initial step is a handful of basic questions in pre-qualification: do you measure your emissions, how, over what period, from what baseline. Prefer suppliers who can show basic measurement capability, and add a contract clause asking them to tell you about material changes. The supplier questionnaire has the wording.

3. Supplier Engagement: one request, one format

For existing suppliers, this is where the work is. The framework's Initial actions are to communicate a time-bound data request, to support baseline collection through standardized templates or platforms, to point suppliers at free tools and methodologies, and to ask them to self-assess what they can measure.

In practice, what decides your response rate is the format. A 10-person supplier can add up twelve months of electricity and fuel bills. The same supplier cannot work out emission factors, boundaries and scopes from a blank spreadsheet. Give them a tool that does the calculation from the bills, and every response comes back in the same format, calculated the same way, with its reporting period stated.

The period itself is the supplier's choice unless you set it: one will report a calendar year, another its financial year. If you intend to add figures up or compare them, name the period you want in the request.

4. Continuous Improvement: count disclosures first

The Initial metrics are participation numbers: the share of suppliers with a climate policy, the share disclosing emissions, and how many took part. Scorecards at this level carry basic indicators such as policy, measurement capability and disclosure status. Then ask suppliers whether the request was feasible. That feedback tells you which of them can move to Intermediate next year.

What EcoDiligence covers in this subtopic

Everything in a Passport is self-reported and not independently audited. The last two rows are the line where Initial ends and we stop.

  • PartlyInitial · Strategy & Planning

    Ask suppliers to calculate and report their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.

    Each supplier's Passport calculates Scope 1 and Scope 2 in tCO₂e from their electricity plus one heating fuel and one vehicle fuel. A supplier burning several fuels of either kind cannot enter them all, and fuel quantities are optional, so a declared fuel with no amount is left out.

  • PartlyInitial · Supplier Selection

    Add basic emissions questions to pre-qualification: do you measure, by what method, from what baseline.

    The Passport shows whether Scope 1 and 2 have been calculated, for which reporting period, and the Scope 2 grid factor and source used. It records whether the supplier has formal environmental goals, with a description, but no structured base year or target.

  • SupportedInitial · Supplier Engagement

    Collect baseline data from suppliers through a standardized template or platform.

    Every invited supplier completes the same guided Passport, so each baseline arrives in one format. Invitations go out individually or by CSV, with up to three automatic reminders a week apart, and you can send more from the dashboard. A supplier who already has a published Passport can share it with your invitation instead of filling in a new one.

  • PartlyInitial · Supplier Engagement

    Ask suppliers to self-assess their measurement practice and data availability.

    A Passport is a self-reported disclosure, labelled as such. It shows what a supplier can produce, but it is not a questionnaire about their measurement capability.

  • SupportedInitial · Continuous Improvement

    Track the share of suppliers disclosing emissions and taking part in engagement.

    The network dashboard shows invited, pending and completed suppliers, the completion rate, and the network average Scope 1 + 2. It does not hold your spend data, so it cannot show share of spend covered.

  • PartlyInitial · Continuous Improvement

    Add basic emissions indicators to supplier scorecards: climate policy, measurement capability, disclosure status.

    Disclosure status and Scope 1 + 2 export as CSV; whether an environmental policy exists is on each supplier's Passport when they answered it (optional), linked from the export. EcoDiligence does not score suppliers — the scorecard stays yours.

  • Not supportedIntermediate · Supplier Selection

    Ask priority suppliers for Scope 3, product-level emissions and primary, activity-based data.

    The Passport covers Scope 1 and 2. It does not calculate Scope 3 or product carbon footprints.

  • Not supportedAdvanced · Supplier Engagement

    Require third-party verified data, verified product footprints, API-level data exchange and cascading to Tier 2+.

    None of these. Passport data is self-reported and not independently audited, and there is no data-exchange API.

Beyond Initial

Intermediate asks priority suppliers for Scope 3, product-level emissions and a move from spend-based to activity-based data, with methodology standards such as the GHG Protocol or ISO 14064. Advanced asks for third-party verification, verified product carbon footprints, API-level data exchange and requirements cascaded to Tier 2 and beyond. Those steps need the suppliers in question to invest, and the framework suggests buyers help fund some of it. A consistent Scope 1 and 2 baseline across the first group is where that later work starts. If a customer of yours runs CDP, see what a CDP supply-chain request involves.

Frequently asked questions

Baseline steps a procurement team can take with limited resources: screen your own Scope 3 with industry averages, ask suppliers to report Scope 1 and 2, add basic emissions questions to pre-qualification, collect baseline data in a standard template or platform, and track how many suppliers disclose.

Not as a requirement. In the framework, asking priority suppliers to measure Scope 3 is an Intermediate action. At Initial level, asking whether a supplier calculates any Scope 3 categories is reasonable; demanding a figure usually produces a guess.

For Initial actions, yes — the framework's Initial steps are about getting suppliers to measure and disclose at all. Verification is an Advanced action for strategic suppliers and high-emitting categories. Label self-reported data as such in your own reporting.

Segment first. The framework's Initial targets include deciding a supplier segmentation strategy. Start with the suppliers behind your largest spend-based Scope 3 categories, then widen the group each year.

An independent guide. EcoDiligence is not affiliated with or endorsed by the UN Global Compact, and using EcoDiligence does not mean you have implemented the framework. Framework details reflect its website as reviewed on September 22, 2026. Not legal advice.

Move the first data request off your team's plate

Suppliers calculate Scope 1 and 2 from their own bills in one guided Passport, free. You see who has completed it and export the results.

See Supplier NetworkTry the network dashboard demo