A breakdown of the industry sectors in climate

Humans emit over 50 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases each year, the vast majority of these come from emissions from our industrial sectors.*

To meet our emissions reduction targets, we need to engage industry supported by other actors in the ecosystem. Emissions reduction requires innovation; businesses in every sector are essential in adopting climate tech solutions early by setting demand signals, testing breakthrough technology, and supporting scalability.

^{*IEA (2023), CO2 Emissions in 2022, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/co2-emissions-in-2022, License: CC BY 4.0}

Sector Emissions:

Food & Agriculture

• 19% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies sourcing, growing, and producing food and beverages. This includes all livestock, grains, fruit, vegetables, fishing, and aquaculture.

Mining & Manufacturing

• 26% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies engaged in mining raw materials, industrial processes such as cement and steel, and heavy and consumer manufacturing.

Buildings & Infrastructure

• 17% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies constructing commercial and residential buildings and infrastructure such as roads, rail networks, and ports. Also included are the heating, cooling, and lighting of buildings.

Energy & Power

• 15% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies engaged in electricity generation, transmission and distribution, and refining and distributing natural gas, oil, petroleum, and biofuel.

Transport & Logistics

• 16% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies engaged in commercial transport by sea, rail, air, and road. This includes all logistics, travel, pipelines, and public transport.

Retail & Services

• 2% of global emissions
• This sector contains all companies engaged in financial services, retail, healthcare, media, software, and telecommunication.

Waste & Environment

• 6% of global emissions
• This sector contains all waste collection, management, recycling, and reuse companies. This sector also comprises land use, water, and sea management, including forestry and water treatment.

^{*Emissions percentages adapted from Climate Watch. 2022. Washington, D.C.: World Resources Institute. Available online at: www.climatewatchdata.org.}

Greenhouse Gas emissions by Sector

It is estimated that humanity produces 50 billion tonnes of Greenhouse Gases each year, over 80% of those come from business emissions. WRI using the latest reports from the UN estimates the percentage breakdown of emissions to be in the following sectors.

Indirect emissions: the role of supply chains

Our world is more interconnected than ever. This adds to the complexity businesses are facing when trying to assess and address their climate emissions. ​

From raw materials to finished product, the majority of business emissions are indirect. ​

Indirect emissions happen along the supply chain, when raw materials are created, assembled and shipped. They also occur when consumers use a product and, later, during waste management and recycling.​

Greenhouse Challenge exists to facilitate sweeping climate action across sectors and supply chains. We believe in the ripple effect of collaboration to amplify positive impact.