SUPPLIER CASCADE

The Supplier Cascade is a methodology developed by the We Mean Business Coalition and partners to address the complexity of Scope 3 emissions. It encourages companies to ask their Tier 1 suppliers to make science-aligned net zero commitments, report progress annually, and repeat this process with their own suppliers to create a 'domino effect' of climate action. The guide outlines three specific requirements for implementation, provides a definition of credible commitments (aligned with 1.5°C), and suggests metrics for tracking progress, such as the percentage of suppliers by spend who have committed to net zero.

• Scope 3 emissions are a significant but difficult-to-track part of a company's carbon footprint, often accounting for more than 70% of the total. Data from CDP indicates a lack of supplier engagement: only 39% of reporting businesses have engaged suppliers on climate matters, and a mere 0.04% require suppliers to set science-based emissions reduction targets.
• The Supplier Cascade framework requires businesses to implement three core steps: asking Tier 1 suppliers to make a science-aligned net zero commitment, requesting that those suppliers cascade the same request to their own Tier 1 suppliers, and reporting progress on targets and supplier action annually.
• A 'credible net zero commitment' under this framework must be science-based and aligned with a 1.5°C limit. This involves performing a Scope 3 screening and setting targets for Scope 1 and 2 emissions, as well as material Scope 3 emissions.
• To track the progress of the Supplier Cascade, the document suggests reporting metrics such as the percentage of Tier 1 suppliers by spend who have made a credible net zero commitment, those who have initiated their own cascade, or those reporting to CDP that they require science-based targets from their own suppliers.

APA

We Mean Business Coalition (n.d.). SUPPLIER CASCADE. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Supplier-Cascade-Explainer_A-5-09-23.pdf

Chicago

We Mean Business Coalition. SUPPLIER CASCADE. n.d. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Supplier-Cascade-Explainer_A-5-09-23.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=We Mean Business Coalition |title=SUPPLIER CASCADE |url=https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Supplier-Cascade-Explainer_A-5-09-23.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wemeanbusinesscoalitionndsupplier, author = {{We Mean Business Coalition}}, title = {{SUPPLIER CASCADE}}, institution = {We Mean Business Coalition}, url = {https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Supplier-Cascade-Explainer_A-5-09-23.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }