This blog follows up on my blog about where to start when making a climate pledge and how aspirational it should be. When it comes to the actual announcement itself, there’s no real magic to making a climate pledge announcement just like any other press release that your company pushes out.

Here are a few tires you might want to kick before you do so:

1. Don’t blindside employees – Your employees matter, and your climate pledge could be cause for concern, particularly in certain industries. Your pledge could mean a different way of doing business that alters the makeup of your workforce, whether immediately or in the long term. Consider the reaction from employees and from any labor unions.

2. Remember your other stakeholders – Your customers, suppliers, investors – the communities in which you operate – will all be keenly interested.

3. Check with securities law counsel – You will want to make sure that your climate pledge announcement is consistent with your SEC filing stream, and that it doesn’t contradict other content that you’ve put out there on any of the company’s other channels.

4. Anticipate questions – To help include everyone, consider developing a white paper or other report with greater detail – and scrubbed by securities law counsel – that backs up the pledge that you’re committing to.

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Photo of Marcy Hupp Marcy Hupp

Marcy counsels and represents clients in environmental compliance and litigation matters. She assists clients with permitting, compliance, and regulatory matters while evaluating and mitigating risks arising under federal, state, and local environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response…

Marcy counsels and represents clients in environmental compliance and litigation matters. She assists clients with permitting, compliance, and regulatory matters while evaluating and mitigating risks arising under federal, state, and local environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and Washington’s Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA). Marcy regularly advises clients on federal and state greenhouse gas regulatory developments and counsels clients assessing and pursuing environmental sustainability goals.

In litigation matters, Marcy represents clients in federal and state courts and in mediation proceedings, including CERCLA and MTCA cost recovery and allocation actions and enforcement actions by federal, state, and local government agencies. Marcy also defends clients against citizen suits brought under the Clean Water Act and other environmental laws.