Carbon Majors is a database of historical production data from 180 of the world’s largest fossil fuel and cement producers. This data is used to quantify the direct production-linked operational emissions and emissions from the combustion of marketed products that can be attributed to these entities. The earliest data goes back to 1854 and contains over 1.39T tonnes of CO2e covering 69% of global fossil fuel and cement CO2 emissions since the start of the Industrial Revolution in 1750.
Carbon Majors was originally released in 2013 by Richard Heede of the Climate Accountability Institute (CAI) in his paper titled "Tracing anthropogenic carbon dioxide and methane emissions to fossil fuel and cement producers, 1854–2010". The primary focus of this database was the accountability of hydrocarbon producers, specifically corporations that consistently generate substantial profits from the extraction and manufacturing of products recognized as the foremost contributors to climate change. Historically, emissions databases at this scale were exclusively established at the national level. Carbon Majors is the first and still the only database to aggregate emissions data on a global scale at the company level. Since its original release it has played a pivotal role in holding fossil fuel producers to account for their climate-related impacts in academic, regulatory, and legal contexts.
Carbon Majors is a platform operated by the global, nonprofit think tank InfluenceMap. It is maintained as an objective, independent source of climate attribution content for civil society groups, the media, citizens, and investors. The platform is supported by philanthropic foundations to remain open source. If you would like more information about how you can support Carbon Majors and its engagement activities (including being listed as a supporter) please email info@influencemap.org.
