The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) has opened its 2026 disclosure cycle with meaningful updates across its environmental reporting framework. Here is what sustainability professionals, corporate executives, and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) teams need to understand before preparing their submission.
What Is New in CDP’s 2026 Disclosure Framework?
CDP’s 2026 updates are designed to strengthen the link between data and action, deepening alignment with global standards, expanding coverage to new environmental domains, and enhancing the usability of the data organization’s surface.
Five changes stand out as most significant for organizations disclosing this cycle.
1. An Ocean Disclosure is Entering the CDP Framework for the First Time
CDP is expanding its framework to cover the ocean, a critical environmental domain that remains under-reported despite growing demand for data.
Full corporate responders may opt in, with a particular expectation for companies in high-impact sectors or with material ocean-related dependencies, impacts, risks or opportunities. Ocean disclosures are unscored in 2026.
Organizations in the fishing, aquaculture, shipping, and offshore energy sectors should begin identifying relevant data now. The unscored status in 2026 gives organizations time to build internal data collection processes before formal assessment begins.
2. Cocoa, Coffee, and Rubber are Now Scored Under the Forests Framework
In 2026, CDP is introducing scoring on cocoa, coffee, and rubber joining cattle, palm oil, soy, and timber as formally scored commodities under its forests framework.
CDP will provide commodity sub-scores to disclosers and data users, now including sub-scores for cocoa, coffee, and rubber.
If your organization produces or sources any of these commodities, reviewing your supply chain data ahead of submission is a practical and important first step.
3. Adaptation and Resilience Are Now Central — Not Optional
The expectation around physical climate risk has shifted significantly in 2026.
In 2024, 48% of large reporting companies identified physical risks as having a substantive effect on their business, either now or in the future.
Existing climate-related modules have been broadened to capture how companies address adaptation and resilience through governance, strategy, financial planning, risk assessment, and engagement sections. Identifying risk is no longer sufficient. CDP now expects organizations to demonstrate how they are actively managing it.
4. SMEs Can Now Achieve CDP success through the new A Score for Climate Change Questionnaire
This is one of the most significant shifts for smaller organizations in the 2026 cycle.
Small-to-Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that demonstrate leading actions will now be able to achieve an SME A Score for Climate Change, a significant differentiation from 2025, where the highest available score was SME ‘B
Actions considered best practice reflect those which are realistic and achievable for SMEs, informed by CDP’s external consultations, analysis of prior year disclosures, and climate standards relevant to SMEs.
In practical terms, this means demonstrating active board-level governance, credible verified emissions data, and documented progress against targets.
5. Standards Alignment Has Strengthened Across the Framework
CDP’s corporate questionnaire already has strong alignment with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Inin 2026, these alignments are strengthened further.
For organizations already reporting under these frameworks, CDP disclosure in 2026 can draw directly on existing work rather than building a parallel process. On emissions accounting, CDP is closely monitoring the update process for the GHG (Greenhouse Gas) Protocol’s corporate suite of standards and plans to update its questions as necessary once this process is completed.
Key Dates: CDP 2026 Disclosure Cycle
- Week of April 20: Questionnaire and reporting guidance published on the CDP Portal, including overviews, glossaries, and technical notes
- Week of April 27: Scoring methodology published on the CDP Portal in English. Requesters can begin creating and submitting request lists
- Week of June 8 : Request list deadline. Requesters must submit their lists by this date. Organizations may still be added after this date but can decline the request
- Week of June 15: Response window opens. Disclosers can access the questionnaire on the CDP Portal and begin their response
- Week of September 14: Scoring deadline. Responses must be submitted by this date to be eligible for a CDP score. Edits can continue after this date but will not be scored
- Week of October 26: Final response deadline. The questionnaire closes and no further edits can be made
- Week of November 30 : Private scores published on the CDP Portal for disclosers and their requesters. Public scores and A Lists published on the CDP website
Submit at least one week before the scoring deadline. Platform demand in the final days of the cycle is consistently high, and late submissions carry real operational risk.
Source: CDP Worldwide — CDP Disclosure 2026 Hub Page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is new in CDP’s 2026 questionnaire? The 2026 cycle introduces ocean disclosure for the first time, expands forests scoring to cocoa, coffee, and rubber, broadens adaptation and resilience requirements, and opens the SME A Score for Climate Change pathway.
Who needs to disclose through CDP in 2026? Any organization requested by a capital markets signatory or a CDP supply chain member, as well as organizations that choose to self-disclose. High-impact sectors are strongly encouraged to opt in to the new ocean disclosure.
What does an SME “A Score for Climate Change” require in 2026? Active board-level governance of climate risks, credible and verified greenhouse gas emissions data, and meaningful documented progress against climate targets — assessed against a standard designed to be achievable for smaller organizations.
When is the CDP 2026 submission deadline? The scoring deadline falls in the week of September 14, 2026. The final submission window closes in the week of October 26, 2026.
How Blue Sky Climate Can Help
Navigating CDP disclosure requires more than understanding what questions are being asked. It requires knowing where your organization stands, what data you need, and how to present it in a way that accurately reflects your environmental commitment.
At Blue Sky Climate, we work alongside organizations at every stage of this process — from first-time submissions to “A List” strategy.
