World's companies ranked on carbon disclosure

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On September 20 international not-for-profit organization the Carbon Disclosure Project released the results of this year's carbon disclosure and climate change strategies from companies around the world.

Each company is ranked out of 100 for the detail of their response regarding their carbon emissions; a high score in Carbon Disclosure equals a comprehensive report into their carbon practices. This year, for the first time ever, the report also includes a Carbon Performance score which ranks and recognizes companies that are taking positive measures to reduce the impact of their business on climate change.

Later in the year, companies addressing environmental issues will also be acknowledged in The Green Awards. The Awards recognize companies that have used marketing and communications campaigns to promote the issue of environmental sustainability in a creative manner. Past winners of the competition include mobile phone company Nokia and soft drinks manufacturer Coca-Cola.

Environmentally friendly business practices are becoming increasingly important to both manufacturers and consumers; reports show that consumers look more favorably upon companies that are perceived to be 'green' and are more willing to spend larger amounts of money on products they deem environmentally friendly.

The top ten 'Global 500' companies recognized on the Carbon Disclosure Leadership (CDL) index and the Carbon Performance Index (CPI) are as follows:

Company	CDL score	CPI Score	Industry
Siemens	98	A	Industrials
Deutsche Post	97	A	Industrials
BASF	96	A	Materials
Bayer	95	A	Health Care
Samsung Electronics	95	A	Information Technology
Lafarge	94	A	Materials
News Corporation	94	A	Consumer Discretionary
Philips Electronics	94	A	Industrials
National Australia Bank	93	A	Financials
Praxair	93	A	Materials