What CDP is and how scoring works
CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) collects standardised questionnaires on climate change, forests, and water security. Investors and buyers use responses to compare how organisations govern environmental issues, set targets, and perform year on year. Corporate climate scores are reported on an A to D- scale, with A representing leadership-level disclosure and performance against CDP's methodology for that year, and lower bands indicating limited or incomplete responses relative to the questionnaire's expectations.
Because CDP is voluntary for many entities but mandatory when requested by investors or customers, it often arrives alongside regulatory filings. The international frameworks section of our climate policy library links CDP to wider reporting architecture.
Alignment with ISSB from 2024 and the annual disclosure cycle
Questionnaire updates and timing
From 2024, CDP fully incorporated the IFRS S2 climate-related disclosure requirements into its climate questionnaire, alongside CDP's own sector-specific questions. That means companies preparing ISSB-aligned climate disclosures can often reuse governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics content when they answer CDP, provided numbers and narrative stay consistent across channels.
The annual cycle typically opens in the spring with a summer submission window for most corporate responders, though exact dates and portal behaviour are published each year on CDP's website. Cities and public authorities that participate follow CDP-ICLEI tracks with their own timelines. Build an internal calendar that includes data lock, internal review, executive sign-off, and third-party assurance if you pursue it.
Tips for improving CDP scores
- Answer every material module completely rather than leaving optional tables blank, because completeness feeds scoring bands
- Align Scope 1, 2, and 3 figures with your audited or management-reviewed GHG inventory and explain boundary and methodology changes
- Document board oversight, linked incentives, and how climate risks feed capital allocation, mirroring ISSB and TCFD-style expectations
- Attach or reference evidence (assurance statements, third-party reviews) where the platform allows, so assessors can verify claims
CDP Cities for municipalities and public venue owners
CDP-ICLEI Track supports local governments reporting climate and environmental data through a harmonised platform used in global disclosure initiatives. Cities disclose emissions inventories, climate hazards, adaptation actions, and energy data that often connect to venues, transit, and waste systems under municipal control.
When a city hosts major events, CDP responses can complement event-specific ISO 20121 or GHG reporting if boundaries are clearly separated so residents and investors understand what is city-wide versus event-specific.
For mandatory climate rules that affect public bodies, pair CDP work with regional briefings such as our European Union, United States, and United Kingdom pages.
How structured data supports stronger disclosure
CDP scoring rewards specificity: numeric targets, verified emissions, and clear links between risks and financial effects. Spreadsheets maintained only by one sustainability manager break under that pressure. Structured data models that store activity data, emission factors, and approvals in one place make it easier to regenerate answers each year, track improvements, and avoid contradictions between CDP, annual reports, and regulatory filings.
How 50X Impact helps
50X Labs provides sustainability technology tailored to venues, sports, events, and municipalities. 50X Impact keeps your climate metrics in a deterministic, audit-friendly structure so CDP responses, ISSB-aligned tables, and sponsor questionnaires draw from the same verified calculations instead of parallel manual versions.
That approach protects score trajectory as questionnaires tighten and gives operations teams a live “Digital Twin” to test interventions before you commit numbers to the portal.