Pledge was started with the belief that technology can be a powerful lever in the fight against climate change.
Combining their collective experience in building and scaling some of the UK’s largest technology businesses, the founders felt they had to take action.
David de Picciotto, CEO, Pledge, tells Warehouse and Logistics News more about the company’s mission.
Please can you give me a bit of background to your company?
At Pledge, we provide software solutions to empower freight forwarders to support their customers in meeting their sustainability goals. We’ve created a product which is fully self-serve, both by software developers and non-technical users with the aim to provide accessibility and transparency to freight emissions measurement, reporting, and offsetting.
What is your background, and experience, and also that of your other founders?
From our time in financial technology businesses like Revolut and Freetrade, we bring a wealth of experience building and scaling businesses in complex and regulated industries like payments and capital markets.
We’re now applying our collective experience in product, technology, and operations to help decarbonise one of the highest-emitting industries on the planet by developing innovative and software-based solutions to measure, reduce, report, and offset greenhouse gas emissions.
What made you decide to tackle this issue?
Our shared commitment to addressing one of the most pressing issues of our time. Inspired by the urgency of the climate crisis, we challenged ourselves with a resounding question: “How can we use our collective experience and expertise to create a solution that unlocks the maximum impact on the climate crisis in the shortest time span?” Answering this question led us to start fervently researching the highest emitting industries and deciding to focus on a single vertical to begin with – transport and logistics – one of the planet’s highest emitting industries with rippling effects.
How much of an issue is carbon emissions in transport and logistics?
To meet our global sustainability goals, it is crucial that we address high-emitting industries like transport and logistics. Currently, the logistics industry is responsible for around 11 percent of human-created carbon emissions worldwide. Our aim with Pledge is to help drive this transformation.
How important is this issue currently for business?
Freight forwarders need to meet shipper demand for emissions reporting, primarily driven by impending regulations and consumer pressures. Many businesses will face issues if they don’t make decarbonisation a priority in the near future. On the one hand, there’s legislation in place that will require their customers, and eventually them, to measure and tackle their environmental footprint across the board. They need to prepare for when this legislation comes into force next year and the following ones. On the other hand, pressures that come with relying on fossil fuels will only increase in the future. Businesses that don’t take the steps to adapt to these changes now incur compliance and monetary risks, and will have to play catchup down the line. We’re starting to see businesses take note, but many still think it’s further down the road than it is. We’re here to educate them on why they need to start thinking about sustainability and the benefits of taking action now.
How can freight and supply chain companies reduce their carbon emissions?
There are lots of ways that freight and supply chain companies can reduce their emissions – from electrifying fleets to modal shifts like switching from air to sea transportation where feasible. But the first step is to measure and track emissions. This enables businesses to identify where the biggest reductions can be made so they can take meaningful action to reduce their carbon footprint. In that process, a company should use an activity-based emissions calculation methodology, versus a spend-based one, and shift from averages to primary data where possible.
Once they have taken that meaningful action and reduced their emissions, there will always be some unavoidable emissions. For this, we’ve created an offsetting marketplace where companies can buy carbon credits from verified sources to offset those final, unavoidable emissions. In the future, we hope to add other methods of achieving this reduction through insetting.
Why are these companies cutting their carbon emissions?
Many companies cut their carbon emissions because they want to attract business from shippers and other LSPs that value sustainability and increasingly have emissions reduction targets on their company’s agenda. As brands become more and more climate aware – driven by consumer consciousness – there’s pressure being pushed down the supply chain for shippers to provide more sustainable forms of transport and distribution. Those companies that can provide evidence of reduced carbon emissions will likely win more business in the future and enable businesses to meet regulations.
Where is the most pressure coming from, regulators, business partners or consumers?
The pressure is coming from all of these places, really. As governments look to reduce their impact on the environment and meet the objectives set out in the Paris Agreement, policymakers are putting regulations in place that mandate climate disclosure and, eventually, action. But we’re also seeing a high amount of voluntary emissions measurement and reduction that often goes beyond what these regulations require. This is mostly driven by consumer consciousness, business partners and even investors, who understand the benefits of starting their sustainability journey now. These benefits include the positive impact sustainability has on their brand image and the chance to win new business and retain current customers.
Are more businesses making decisions on who to work, or partner with, based on a company’s carbon emission record?
Yes, we’re seeing an increasing number of companies, particularly shippers, making emissions measurements and reporting part of their tenders. We expect that this preference to work with companies that offer sustainability initiatives and services will only increase in the coming years, particularly as regulations such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) in the EU and Sustainable Disclosure Requirements (SDR) in the UK come into force now and in the following years.
How does the Pledge platform work?
Pledge ingests shipment data and uses algorithms to calculate the amount of emissions generated in that shipment, for every leg of the journey. Our platform is accredited by the Smart Freight Centre (SFC) to be in conformance with the GLEC framework, which means that we adhere to the highest industry standard for calculating and reporting carbon emissions in the transport and logistics sector.
We have created a product that enables you to go into as much detail as you can to get the most accurate emissions calculation. For example, you can input carrier codes and vessel numbers to increase the accuracy of your calculation. We’ve also created a unique feature called Clarity™. Clarity™ breaks down how emissions are calculated for every leg of a shipment journey. This means customers and auditors have full visibility of how we reached the results we did. It’s designed to create emissions transparency in the supply chain.
You have just launched your freight emissions calculator, how does this work, and how will it help freight forwarders?
Our calculator is an interactive, open-access tool that works in the same way as our platform. It starts by asking users to input the shipment data such as origin, destination, and cargo weight, and then uses algorithms to calculate the freight emissions for a single shipment. It also includes Clarity™ and the option for users to input extra data such as vessel number or carrier code to increase accuracy.
It’s designed to give freight forwarders a first-hand experience of the power that our product can deliver before they decide to sign up for our 14-day free trial where they have access to all functions that our platform has to offer.
What is the GLEC Framework, and why is it important?
The GLEC Framework is a framework from the Global Logistics Emissions Council for calculating and reporting multimodal supply chain emissions. It’s the only globally recognised methodology within the logistics sector. We’re accredited for adherence with it by the Smart Freight Centre. Our product is also in alignment with ISO:14083, the recently released global standard for calculating greenhouse gas emissions. As ISO:14083 is aligned with the GLEC framework, we comply with its requirements.
You recently secured $10 million in funding for Pledge. What do you plan to use this money for?
We’re planning to further develop our logistics emissions product and continue on our mission of delivering best-in-class tools and infrastructure to help logistics businesses and their clients accelerate their transition to net zero.
Pledge
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