- CDP and Google.org launch an AI-powered platform to help cities, states, and regions analyze climate risks and mobilize finance.
- Local climate finance needs have soared to a record $105 billion, according to CDP data.
- The six-month Google.org Fellowship will deploy AI specialists, engineers, and designers to build open-source climate intelligence tools.
CDP, a global nonprofit that operates the world’s largest independent environmental disclosure platform, has partnered with Google.org to develop artificial intelligence tools to help cities, states, and local governments turn climate data into actionable investments and policy decisions.
This work is being done through the Google.org Fellowship, which deploys teams of Google engineers, AI specialists, and designers to support high-impact nonprofit projects. The group will work with CDP over six months to build an open source platform that integrates Google’s AI and cloud technologies with CDP’s global environmental datasets.
The goal is simple. We transform vast amounts of climate and environmental data into insights that local governments can use to reduce climate risks, plan resilience strategies, and secure funding.
This partnership comes at a time when climate risks at the local level are accelerating while funding for adaptation and mitigation is lagging behind demand.
$105 billion funding gap emerges
CDP’s latest data highlights the scale of the challenge facing local governments around the world. The group said funding needs for climate resilience and environmental projects across cities, states and regions have soared to a record $105 billion.
“CDP is not only the world’s only independent platform for corporate sustainability reporting, but also uncovers climate resilience projects across more than 1,000 cities, states and territories around the world. According to our data, local government funding needs have skyrocketed to a record US$105 billion. The message is clear. The urgency to increase capital flows has never been greater.,” said Shelley Madera, CDP CEO.
Local governments are often on the front lines of climate change, facing increasing threats such as flooding, extreme heat, water stress and biodiversity loss. However, many companies lack integrated systems that can translate environmental data into clear assessments of risk exposure, investment priorities, and financing opportunities.
As a result, the flow of climate finance to cities and regions remains well below the funding needed to support adaptation and decarbonization strategies.
Turn data into actionable climate information
The new AI platform aims to address that gap by transforming CDP’s extensive environmental datasets into decision support tools for public leaders.
Instead of relying on static reports, the platform generates customized insights that enable cities and municipalities to identify climate vulnerabilities, evaluate mitigation options, and prioritize projects with the highest environmental and social impacts.
The system could also help local authorities communicate their financing needs to investors, multilateral institutions and development banks, potentially improving access to climate finance.
“We’re proud to be supported by Google.org in building transformational tools that bring CDP’s powerful data to life and accelerate real-world action. By leveraging CDP’s unparalleled environmental datasets with Google’s talent and cutting-edge AI, we provide local leaders with insights to improve lives, strengthen communities, and drive meaningful, planet-friendly decisions at scale.” said Madera.
Related article: CDP and EFRAG strengthen ESRS collaboration to facilitate corporate reporting
Tech talent mobilized for climate impact
The Google.org Fellowship provides the technical foundation for the project. This initiative places Google employees at no cost to support nonprofit organizations tackling complex global challenges.
In this project, a multidisciplinary team will work with CDP to design the platform’s architecture, user experience, and AI model.
The team will integrate Google’s cloud computing infrastructure and machine learning tools to process large environmental datasets and generate useful insights for policymakers.
“The Google.org Fellowship program is one of the most effective models for leveraging Google’s technical expertise to accelerate nonprofit impact.,” said Maggie Johnson, Global Head of Google.org. “We believe that technology can be a powerful force multiplier, and that AI in particular has the power to fundamentally change the way we create insights from data. ”
Why local climate information is important
For investors, development banks and national governments, this initiative reflects a growing recognition that climate action is increasingly being taken at the local level.
Cities alone account for more than 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions and are responsible for much of the infrastructure investment needed for decarbonization and climate resilience.
However, fragmented data systems often prevent decision makers from linking environmental risks to specific investment pipelines.
A collaboration between CDP and Google.org aims to close that gap by combining one of the world’s largest climate disclosure datasets with advanced AI analytics.
If successful, the platform could enable local governments to move more quickly from climate change reporting to project development, strengthening the pipeline of profitable resilience and decarbonization investments.
In a world where climate risks are becoming increasingly local, but financing remains global, tools that transform data into investment-ready actions could be central to closing the climate finance gap.
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