The real estate firm engaging with thousands of suppliers to tackle Scope 3 emissions

CBRE is implementing a multi-step engagement strategy to tackle Scope 3 emissions, which are over 50 times greater than its direct operational emissions. By identifying a core group of 7,500 suppliers responsible for 90% of its purchased goods and services emissions, the firm provides tailored support, including a free emissions calculation platform via Emitwise, to help small and medium-sized enterprises report data. While only 16% of engaged suppliers have provided all requested information, the company is improving response rates by integrating climate reporting into its Partner Excellence Program and translating resources into multiple languages.

• CBRE's supply chain is exceptionally large, consisting of over 130,000 suppliers, and generates emissions more than 50 times higher than the company's own direct operational emissions.
• Through a spend-based analysis, CBRE identified that 90% of its emissions from purchased goods and services are produced by a group of 7,500 suppliers, who represent less than 6% of its total supplier base.
• To support suppliers—particularly SMEs—in calculating emissions, CBRE provides a free standardized platform through a partnership with Emitwise.
• Data collection efforts have seen nearly 40% of engaged suppliers provide climate data, though only 16% have provided all requested information. Over 100 suppliers have used the process to calculate their carbon emissions for the first time.
• CBRE is transitioning from voluntary data requests to embedding climate reporting as an expectation within its Partner Excellence Program, which offers benefits such as improved payment terms and access to senior leadership.

APA

Clandillon, S. (2025). The real estate firm engaging with thousands of suppliers to tackle Scope 3 emissions. We Mean Business Coalition. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/blog/the-real-estate-firm-engaging-with-thousands-of-suppliers-to-tackle-scope-3-emissions/

Chicago

Clandillon, Susan. The real estate firm engaging with thousands of suppliers to tackle Scope 3 emissions. We Mean Business Coalition, 2025. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/blog/the-real-estate-firm-engaging-with-thousands-of-suppliers-to-tackle-scope-3-emissions/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Clandillon |first1=Susan |title=The real estate firm engaging with thousands of suppliers to tackle Scope 3 emissions |publisher=We Mean Business Coalition |date=10 January 2025 |url=https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/blog/the-real-estate-firm-engaging-with-thousands-of-suppliers-to-tackle-scope-3-emissions/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clandillon2025real, author = {Clandillon, Susan}, title = {{The real estate firm engaging with thousands of suppliers to tackle Scope 3 emissions}}, institution = {We Mean Business Coalition}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/blog/the-real-estate-firm-engaging-with-thousands-of-suppliers-to-tackle-scope-3-emissions/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }