Climate Change Data

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Environmental Sustainability
• Economic Sustainability
• Social Sustainability

Environmental Achievements

• Not disclosed

Social Achievements

• Not disclosed

Governance Achievements

• Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Lack of adequate importance or attention given to sustainable facilities management
• Resistance to change
• Cost implications
• Educational requirements
• Quantifying benefits
• Justification for initiatives

Mitigation Strategies

• Raising awareness and understanding of responsibilities
• Advice and help from charities and bodies (Carbon Trust, Energy Saving Trust, Environment Agency)
• Job roles focusing on corporate, social, and environmental responsibilities
• Improved sustainable facilities management practices

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement

• Not disclosed

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Not disclosed

Transition Risks

• Not disclosed

Opportunities

• Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: Null

Certifications: Null

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Not disclosed

Awards & Recognition

• Not disclosed

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Ethical Conduct
• Data Privacy and Security
• Climate Change
• Education Access and Affordability
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Employee Well-being
• Community Investment
• Supply Chain Responsibility
• Learner Outcomes

Environmental Achievements

• Reduced climate footprint by 15% (Scope 1 and 2) compared with 2014
• Reduced global climate footprint by 30% over the last six years
• Maintained climate neutrality since 2009
• Reduced paper purchase to 146,000 metric tons in 2015 (from approximately 300,000 metric tons in previous years)
• Reduced water use 21% per square meter in 2015

Social Achievements

• Contributed £10.7 million in community investment (1.5% of pre-tax profits)
• Launched Project Literacy, reaching 969 million people
• Launched Every Child Learning partnership with Save the Children
• Supported Camfed's program, reaching over 60,744 girls in Zimbabwe and Tanzania
• 89% of employees agreed that “Pearson’s values are important to me” in the 2015 employee engagement survey
• Over 4,000 employees completed unconscious bias training
• Launched a new health and wellbeing strategy
• 93% of parents would recommend Connections Academy

Governance Achievements

• Revised and updated the Pearson Code of Conduct, with over 99% of employees confirming they read and understood it
• Centralized data privacy and information security functions
• Appointed a chief privacy officer and established a global data privacy office
• Implemented mandatory annual training for all employees on information security and data privacy
• 30% female representation on the board

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Maintaining data privacy and security in a growing digital environment
• Ensuring the affordability and accessibility of educational products and services globally
• Addressing the skills gap between job seekers and employers
• Increasing the reach of sustainability initiatives across a global workforce
• Managing environmental impact of paper-based products and supply chain activities

Mitigation Strategies

• Centralized data privacy and information security functions, implemented mandatory training, and developed a two-year improvement program
• Launched the Pearson Affordable Learning Fund (PALF) and Tomorrow’s Markets Incubator
• Developed the Pearson Personal and Social Capabilities Framework to address employability skills
• Established a Responsible Business Leadership Council and implemented a new sustainability plan
• Set targets for reducing GHG emissions, energy use, and paper consumption; invested in renewable energy and offsetting programs

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Ongoing program of supplier visits and third-party audits

Responsible Procurement

• Business partner code of conduct
• Incorporation of UN Global Compact principles into terms of business
• Common contract template for franchise partners

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Not disclosed

Transition Risks

• Not disclosed

Opportunities

• Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI G4

Certifications: Carbon Trust Standard, ISO 14001 (UK and Australia)

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 4 (Quality Education)
• Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
• Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities)

Pearson's business strategy aligns with these goals through its commitment to providing quality education, promoting employability skills, and ensuring equitable access to learning opportunities.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Digital learning products and services
• Energy-efficient buildings

Awards & Recognition

• Carbon Trust Standard
• ISO 14001
• LEED Gold Certification
• Stonewall Diversity Champion
• WorldatWork Work Life Seal of Distinction
• RoSPA Bronze Award
• Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index
• Dave Thomas Foundation Adoption Friendly Workplace

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Be a trusted partner
• Reach more learners
• Shape the future of learning

Environmental Achievements

• Cut our absolute carbon footprint by 13.7% year-on-year

Social Achievements

• Launched Pearson U, including Technology Academy, to support our employees and our digital transformation
• Supported pay equality
• Committed to inclusive content
• Reached 120,000+ girls in secondary school through our Camfed partnership in East Africa and awarded 567 BTEC qualifications to mentors
• Doubled our Project Literacy network to 90 partners

Governance Achievements

• Launched our 2020 Sustainability Plan
• Published our first Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability report

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Challenges in early 2016, particularly in our North American market, where a handful of unplanned system slowdowns and application failures impacted the customer experience
• Inappropriate content was found in one of our textbooks in South Africa

Mitigation Strategies

• Formed a cross-functional coalition of senior leaders to define a common company-wide framework for incorporating customer feedback into our processes
• Undertaken work to streamline Pearson’s web properties into one pearson.com
• Worked closely with teachers from the local communities who highlighted this problem to amend the language

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Expanded the scope of our independent audit program to include medium-risk print suppliers in 2016

Responsible Procurement

• UN Global Compact principles
• Business partner code of conduct

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI G4 Core guidelines

Certifications: ISO 14001, ISO 18001, ISO 50001, LEED Gold Certification

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• SDG 4
• SDG 8
• SDG 10

Our 2020 Sustainability Plan is designed to support our business and global efforts to address some of the world’s biggest challenges: lack of access to education, growing inequality, high youth unemployment, unprecedented migration and conflict, market disruption caused by technology and artificial intelligence, and pressure on our natural resources.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Revel
• MyLab & Mastering
• Bug Club
• Vuma

Awards & Recognition

• Corporate Knights – World’s 100 Most Sustainable Companies
• Dow Jones Sustainability Index – Silver Class
• FTSE4Good
• Human Rights Campaign – Corporate Equality Index
• RoSPA Silver Award for H&S performance

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Reach more learners
• Shape the future of learning
• Be a trusted partner

Environmental Achievements

• Met our goal to reduce our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% from a 2009 baseline.

Social Achievements

• US colleges and universities participating in our inclusive access program reported their students collectively saved more than $100m on course materials in 2017 alone.
• Launched a new mobile learning app and programs in three schools in Jordan through our Every Child Learning partnership with Save the Children.
• Awarded 1,037 BTEC qualifications to women in Zimbabwe and Ghana as part of our partnership with Camfed.
• Made over $2m in Kiva loans to 43,000+ micro-entrepreneurs in 82 countries
• Mobilized 1,000+ employees in 15 cities for North America Volunteer Day.

Governance Achievements

• Completed a human rights assessment
• Released our first gender pay report in the United Kingdom

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Cost of course materials can have a significant impact on students’ ability to prepare for and successfully complete courses.
• Addressing youth unemployment in South Africa
• Accessibility for people with disabilities
• Adult illiteracy in the US and UK

Mitigation Strategies

• Introduced new offerings to reduce the costs of our courseware offerings and continue to work on developing more affordable options for all learners.
• Launched the Tomorrow’s Markets Incubator to develop new products and services for low-income and underserved communities.
• Making 100% of our digital portfolio accessible for people with disabilities around the world by 2020.
• Project Literacy’s “Give Your Word” campaign to shed light on adult illiteracy.

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

• Business Partner Code of Conduct
• Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification
• Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI Standards, UN Global Compact

Certifications: Carbon Trust Standard, ISO 14001 (UK and Australia)

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 4: Quality education
• Goal 8: Decent work and economic growth
• Goal 10: Reduced inequalities

Pearson's initiatives contribute to these goals through improved access to education, skills development, and economic empowerment.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Digital learning tools
• Mobile learning apps

Awards & Recognition

• Corporate Knights Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations
• Dow Jones Sustainability Index
• FTSE4Good
• Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index
• Third Sector UK Partnership of the Year

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Reach more learners
• Shape the future of learning
• Be a trusted partner

Environmental Achievements

• Reduced energy consumption by 56% from 2013 baseline
• Maintained climate neutral status for directly controlled operations
• Purchased 100% of electricity from renewable sources

Social Achievements

• Published first human rights statement
• Expanded Every Child Learning partnership with Save the Children to 19 schools
• Achieved goal of enrolling 100,000 students in Pearson Career Success

Governance Achievements

• Published first public Human Rights Statement
• Implemented a new safeguarding strategy for 2018-2020
• Achieved 100% completion of Code of Conduct training by all employees

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Accessibility challenges in making 100% of higher education courseware accessible by 2020
• Managing the impact of business transformation and headcount reduction
• Addressing gender pay gap

Mitigation Strategies

• Formation of a Global Accessibility Steering Group
• Supporting colleagues through transformation with communication and consultation
• Developing a roadmap to address gender pay gap

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Medium and high-risk suppliers (over £100,000 spend) undergo independent third-party audits every 24 months.

Responsible Procurement

• Business Partner Code of Conduct
• Responsible paper sourcing policy (preference for FSC or PEFC certified paper)

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI Standards, UN Global Compact Ten Principles, UN Sustainable Development Goals

Certifications: ISO 14001, Carbon Trust Standard

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• SDG 4: Quality education
• SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth
• SDG 10: Reduce inequalities

Initiatives aligned with SDGs through 2020 Sustainability Plan and core business activities.

Awards & Recognition

• Corporate Knights Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations
• PwC Building Public Trust Award for Best Tax Reporting
• Allan Fels Mental Health Award (Pearson WELL)
• National Safety Council of Australia’s Best Health & Wellbeing Program

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Access to education for disadvantaged and underserved groups
• Lifelong learning, closing key skills gaps
• Education for a better world
• Digital ethics & data management
• Impact of education
• Public policy and collaboration on education and employment
• Transform education for the digital age
• Sustainability foundations for social and environmental impacts

Environmental Achievements

• Reduced Greenhouse Gas emissions by 50% (using 2009 as the base year)
• Reduced energy use in buildings by 50% (using 2013 as the base year)

Social Achievements

• Reached 135,000 learners through Pearson’s Career Success program
• Awarded 2,595 BTECs through partnership with Camfed

Governance Achievements

• 100% of employees completed code of conduct certification or training

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Involuntary terminations due to divestiture and restructuring driving up turnover rates
• Addressing gaps in processes for learners to raise concerns about harassment or abuse

Mitigation Strategies

• Commitments to employees as a responsible employer (inform, support, equip colleagues)
• Developing action plans to address gaps identified through an assessment of how our processes for learners to raise concerns about harassment or abuse in our direct delivery businesses align with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

• Supply chain review project to assess and improve approach to managing social and environmental sustainability risks

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI Standards: Core option, UN Global Compact, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• 4
• 8
• 10

Advancing UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly goal 4 on quality education, goal 8 on decent jobs and economic growth and goal 10 on reducing inequality

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Climate Change
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
• Empowering People

Environmental Achievements

• Reduced combined Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions by 26% from the 2018 baseline (adjusted for business disposals).

Social Achievements

• Launched a new Student Diversity Ambassador Programme.
• Exceeded succession plan objectives with 72% of plans including a woman successor and 24% including people of color.
• 71% of employees self-reported upskilling and reskilling each quarter.

Governance Achievements

• Refreshed ESG framework.
• Reaffirmed commitment to net zero by 2030.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Supply chain disruptions.
• Increased global political risk and anti-testing sentiment.
• Increased competition for talent.
• Increased commoditization of content.
• Rising end-user expectations.
• External competition for digital education assets.

Mitigation Strategies

• Reorganized into five business divisions.
• Investment in online proctoring and digital-first scoring.
• Subscription product launches (Pearson+).
• Investment in acquisitions offering new methods for testing or delivering content.
• Direct to Consumer Group to provide benchmark for consumer-grade products and services.
• Investment plans included in strategic plans, aligning requirements with divisional structure.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Assessed suppliers against industry-leading practices to reduce risk in Pearson’s supply chain. Focus was on high-risk suppliers and those in Tier 1 (spending more than £1m per annum).

Responsible Procurement

• Responsible Procurement programme
• Alignment with GHG strategy is a requirement of doing business.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Extreme weather events impacting operations in the Philippines and India.

Transition Risks

• Increased costs driven by risk of disruption to distribution.
• Reduced government funding for education.

Opportunities

• Opportunities associated with (re)training for ‘green collar’ careers.
• Opportunity to use ‘blended’ service offering to mitigate extreme weather events.

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, SASB, TCFD, UNGC

Certifications: ISO 45001

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• SDG 4 (Quality Education)
• SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
• SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities)

Initiatives contribute to these goals through increased access to learning, skills development, and equitable opportunities.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Pearson+
• Sustainable courses and qualifications

Awards & Recognition

• Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index (100%),
• Corporate Knights World’s 100 Most Sustainable Companies (#96 overall, #1 in UK HQ peer group)
• Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion (US)
• Clean200
• Stonewall Top 100 company for LGBT+ inclusion (#19)

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Climate change
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I)
• Data privacy and security
• Responsible content
• Employee engagement

Environmental Achievements

• Reduced scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions by 33% against a 2018 baseline.

Social Achievements

• Launched a new people strategy focused on employee engagement, talent investment, and DE&I.
• Increased diverse representation in leadership development programs.
• Pearson+ expanded registered users, extending digital content offering, reach, and accessibility.
• Mondly integrated into Pearson+, offering expanded access to digital language learning.

Governance Achievements

• Reviewed and adjusted the remit of the Reputation & Responsibility Committee to strengthen its focus on ESG topics.
• Launched a new Privacy Centre for consumers linked to all products and a universal preferences centre.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Supply chain disruptions
• High global inflation
• Potential recession in key markets
• Competition from open educational resources and other digital learning providers
• Cybersecurity threats and data privacy concerns
• Maintaining accreditation in a changing regulatory environment

Mitigation Strategies

• Shifting from print to digital products
• Rationalising property footprint
• Investing in technology and talent
• Strengthening data security and privacy measures
• Developing new products and services to meet evolving customer expectations
• Engaging with policymakers and regulators
• Implementing business contingency plans and insurance

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: EcoVadis assessment (or equivalent) for top 50 suppliers

Responsible Procurement

• Code of Conduct
• Responsible Procurement Policy
• Ethically sourced paper
• Diverse supplier engagement

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Flooding and hurricanes
• Wildfires
• Water scarcity

Transition Risks

• Increased service charges
• Increased cost of sustainably-certified paper
• Increased EU ETS price
• Reputational risks tied to offsetting

Opportunities

• Digitization
• Development of climate-related educational content

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: TCFD, SASB, GRI

Certifications: Global Certified Accessible™ (Higher Education)

Third-party Assurance: Corporate Citizenship

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 4 (Quality Education)
• Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
• Goal 13 (Climate Action)

Pearson's initiatives contribute to these goals by providing access to education, developing workforce skills, and reducing its environmental impact.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Pearson+
• Mondly
• Skills Accelerator
• Sustainability courses

Awards & Recognition

• Gold award for Best Corporate Website - FTSE 100

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Driving learning for everyone with our products
• Empowering our people to make a difference
• Leading responsibly for a better planet

Environmental Achievements

• Achieved a 16.3% reduction in emissions during 2023 compared to 2022, leading to a 44% reduction of GHG emissions overall (vs a market-based target of 50% reduction in 2030 against a 2018 baseline).
• Increased the use of 100% renewable electricity consumption.
• Reduced physical footprint by 8% through decommissioning utility-intensive buildings.

Social Achievements

• Launched a skills-based volunteering initiative, with employees completing over 20,000 hours of volunteering.
• Improved employee engagement GrandMean score to 4.09 out of 5 (from 3.96 in 2022).
• Received a ‘High Commendation’ award from Stonewall Workplace Equality Index for the UK chapter of its Spectrum ERG.

Governance Achievements

• Introduced a new sustainability data platform.
• Received an update on sustainability regulation from legal counsel.
• Aligned metrics focusing on and incentivizing increased diversity in executive remuneration.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Supply chain disruptions affecting the procurement of sustainably-certified paper.
• Increased cost in EU ETS certificates for paper mills.
• Reputational risk of having a non-SBTi approved “net zero” target.

Mitigation Strategies

• Digitalisation strategy to reduce paper use and reliance on paper-based products.
• Improved product design and appropriate pricing strategies.
• Submitting a net zero long-term target to 2050 to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) for validation.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Analysis of 190 large-scale suppliers through EcoVadis and Pearson's own criteria.

Responsible Procurement

• Updated Responsible Procurement policy strengthening minimum standards for suppliers.
• Embedding carbon maturity considerations into every stage of the supplier lifecycle.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Facility damage due to acute hazards (flood, hurricane, wildfire)
• Increased water scarcity
• Increased paper costs
• Increased use of cloud services

Transition Risks

• Building efficiency standards
• Procurement of sustainably-certified paper
• Increased cost in EU ETS certificates
• Reputational risk of having a non-SBTi approved “net zero” target

Opportunities

• Further digitisation of business
• Developing climate-related educational content and services
• Adopting more ambitious reduction plans

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, SASB, TCFD, UNGC

Certifications: ISO 14001:2015 (headquarters and three major UK sites), ISO 45001 (80 Strand headquarters)

Third-party Assurance: SLR Consulting (limited assurance)

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• SDG 4 (Quality Education)
• SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
• SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities)

Pearson's focus on lifelong learning and education contributes to these goals.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Digital products (e.g., Mondly) with lower emissions than print products.

Awards & Recognition

• Best Diversity and Inclusion initiative 2023 at the Women in Technology Excellence Awards UK