Podcast From Platform to Proof: How To Tackle Your Scope 3 Emissions
Part 3 of the mini-series. Jay explains how to tackle Scope 3 emissions, how supply chain engagement works in practice, and how carbon accounting software can streamline the process.
Key questions
What are Scope 3 emissions and why do they matter?
Scope 3 emissions come from a company's value and supply chain, often accounting for 70-90% of total emissions. Key drivers for tackling Scope 3 include Net Zero commitments, new regulations like California's 2026 requirements affecting ~10,000 companies, and growing stakeholder demands.
How does Gravity approach supply chain emissions engagement?
Gravity takes an empathetic approach — rather than just extracting data from suppliers, it provides them with tools and training to measure their own emissions. AI agents can search for public disclosures and reach out to suppliers directly, with full audit trails for transparency.
Transcript
The term 'scope 3' comes from a document and initiative called the GHG Protocol, which sets out the core methodology by which companies should measure and account for their greenhouse gas emissions. It details 3 different scopes: Scope 1 is your direct emissions (i.e. fuel for vehicle use etc), Scope 2 is grid emissions associated with purchased electricity or other forms of energy (i.e. energy for offices). Scope 3 is a very broad term and addresses the emissions created by your value/supply chain. These emissions can count to upwards of 70% of a company's total emissions, depending on the nature of the business that can even go as high as 90%.
Jay summarises 3 of the main drivers for tackling Scope 3: First, it's often the biggest emission source — for those looking to truly hit Net Zero, they can't simply ignore their largest emission source. Second, regulation requirements — Scope 3 is increasingly being included within mandatory regulations. The new regulations coming into effect for California in 2026 will see around 10,000 companies needing to report on their scope 3 emissions. Third, stakeholder requirements — customers and other stakeholders are asking for more evidence of meaningful sustainability action.
When looking to your scope 3 emissions, you'll first need to determine which of the 15 emission categories is going to be important for your business. The nature of your business will determine which of the categories are a priority. It's key to set up a defined measurement cycle that will need the ability to get more granular as you progress.
Gravity took a more empathetic approach to supply chain engagement, by looking at this process from the supplier's perspective. They highlighted that this shouldn't just be an extractive exercise — the supplier should also be getting something out of this. One way to do so would be to give them training and/or tools in order to measure their emissions so they can give you the data you need, and also have that data to share with their other customers. There are also a number of AI tools that can comb the web and look for any public carbon disclosures or ESG reports that suppliers may have already made.
Using Gravity as an example, they've built a lot of tools that can take raw inventory and gather a lot of data concerning purchasing, logistics etc. This is all collated into one area where it can be analysed and used for calculations. They also have an AI agent that can comb the web for specific information that your suppliers may have publicly disclosed. An AI agent can also reach out directly to suppliers for further information which will be collated within your centralised system, checked for accuracy and put into a format that's ready for reporting. This is all done with a full audit trail for transparency.