MCAP 2026 Information Session
Learn more about MCAP today! Join one of our upcoming information session webinars.
Learn more about MCAP today! Join one of our upcoming information session webinars.
Learn more about MCAP today! Join one of our upcoming information session webinars.
Cascale’s 2025 Annual Report highlights expanded manufacturer engagement, new partnerships, and industry-wide progress through collective action.
Cascale’s Manufacturer Climate Action Program supports path to validated targets representing 1.6 million metric tons of CO2e reduction potential in 19 countries with support of sponsor brands including Gap Inc, New Balance, and PUMA
Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Oakland (CA) – June 18, 2026: Addressing climate change requires more than ambition — it requires measurable action. Cascale today released the Manufacturer Climate Action Program (MCAP) Annual Impact Report 2025, highlighting significant progress by manufacturers, suppliers, and brands working together to accelerate decarbonization across the global value chain.
“I’m extremely proud that MCAP has achieved a significant milestone in its evolution into a scaled industry decarbonization program participated by 85 manufacturer groups across 19 countries. This structural and pragmatic approach, which enables manufacturers not only in setting science aligned targets as the start, catalyzes a shift from commitment to implementation across the manufacturing community; to achieve it, all manufacturers have a multi-year actionable decarbonization plan which contains available levers to deliver ongoing emissions reductions. During the past 12 months, MCAP strategic council members have played a critical role in shaping the program; we deeply appreciate the time, expertise, and commitment contributed by them whose collaborative leadership has played a critical role in advancing the program delivery and impact. The progress we are seeing today reflects the power of structured collaboration, shared accountability, and practical tools that enable manufacturers to act at scale.” – Joyce Tsoi, senior director, decarbonization program, Cascale
Key Takeaways
MCAP supports manufacturers and suppliers with a practical pathway to measure emissions, set science-aligned targets (SATs) for scope 1 and 2 emissions, assess climate risks, and develop actionable decarbonization plans. In May 2025, the multi-stakeholder MCAP Strategic Council was established and provided strong programmatic governance to ensure all programmatic activities align with its strategic objectives and goals, ensure performance monitoring and accountability, and ensure it continues to deliver value.
To date, 85 manufacturers and eight sponsoring brands have been engaged through MCAP across 446 participating facilities in 19 countries. A full 52 science-aligned targets are now validated, representing more than 1.6 million metric tons of CO2e reduction potential. Finally, 33 climate risk assessments were completed to strengthen long-term resilience planning, and 43 decarbonization plans are currently in development. The report underscores the program’s ability to translate climate commitments into measurable outcomes.
Manufacturer Focus
The program combines technical support, training, third-party validation, and peer engagement to help manufacturers move from planning to implementation. Cascale hosts monthly office hours and ongoing training sessions in both English and Chinese. Through MCAP’s peer-learning community, manufacturers have gained access to practical knowledge, shared experiences, and real-world solutions from others facing similar challenges.
“We joined MCAP with strong ESG capabilities but faced challenges coordinating climate action across multiple overseas manufacturing sites. MCAP’s structured target-setting process enabled us to establish a science-based reduction strategy while unifying our international facilities under a cohesive decarbonization framework. MCAP has been a critical turning point for Nobland, enabling us to move from intention to execution.” – Jay Kim, ESG team leader, Nobland
“The MCAP Climate Risk Assessment will be extremely valuable to our long-term planning as we take preventative action to reduce heat and maintain productivity. This is now part of our ongoing resilience strategy.” – Cherry Liu, QA manager, My Nga Trade
“Martex Group joined MCAP with a strong base of energy data, but we needed a clearer framework to turn this information into measurable climate targets. Joining MCAP has been a significant opportunity for our company, creating the structure we needed to move from data collection to a clear, actionable decarbonization strategy.” – Akila Lakshan, assistant manager sustainability, Martex Group
Brand Engagement
MCAP supports brands in sponsoring manufacturers to address Scope 3 emissions, which often represent the majority of a brand’s carbon footprint. Sponsorship is not philanthropy — it is the most direct route a brand has to the supplier capability its own targets depend on. The value runs in both directions: Manufacturers achieve structure, credibility, and the ability to act, while brands gain supplier transparency, aligned progress against a shared standard, and concrete evidence of Scope 3 action they can share with regulators and investors.
“Gap Inc. has been engaged with MCAP since the program’s inception. We have seen firsthand how MCAP has strengthened collaboration with our suppliers and deepened strategic partnerships that are essential to driving progress.” – Sally Gilligan, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Gap Inc
“MCAP has played an important role in turning climate commitments into practical progress. We—and our suppliers–have learned a great deal through the program and seen valuable outcomes tied to goals and aligned action plans. By providing structure to the decarbonization journey, MCAP has helped participating facilities better understand and plan their path forward.” – Tony Hung, Manager, Supply Chain Sustainability, New Balance ”
“MCAP equips our suppliers with the tools, structure, and clear pathway needed to take meaningful action on decarbonization and continue advancing their sustainability journey. We’ve seen encouraging growth in participating manufacturers from the beginning to the end of the program — a journey that has been both motivating and impactful. We appreciate Cascale’s active engagement and the support provided throughout the process.” – Mia Gunawan, director of environmental sustainability, PUMA
Looking Ahead
As of April 2026, all 52 graduates from Cohorts 1 and 2 have successfully completed the 18-month program with a validated science-aligned target. This 100 percent validation rate stands as direct evidence of the program’s impact, demonstrating how MCAP translates intent into measurable action.
Cascale will launch two new MCAP cohorts this year. The organization is also developing post-MCAP programming to extend the manufacturer-brand partnership and support ongoing target tracking and emissions reduction.
Brands, manufacturers, and suppliers interested in learning more about MCAP can register for an upcoming information session through Cascale’s website. For additional information, contact mcap@cascale.org.
Media Contact: Forster Communications, cascaleforster@forster.co.uk
ABOUT CASCALE
Cascale is the global nonprofit alliance driving systemic transformation to combat climate change and support decent work in the consumer goods industry. Formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Cascale unites a diverse, worldwide ecosystem of over 300 retailer, brand, manufacturer, supplier, service provider, government, academic, and nonprofit members.
Our alliance catalyzes pre-competitive collaboration for maximum impact, anchored by our stewardship of the Higg Index frameworks — implemented through the Worldly technology platform — and recent acquisition of the Better Buying and Sustainable Furnishings Council tools. While these methodologies are central to our work, they are part of a broader strategy to mobilize collective action, challenge industry norms, and build an industry that gives back more than it takes to the planet and its people.
Beyond Targets: The Manufacturer Climate Action Program (MCAP) is a climate action onboarding and capability-building program utilized by over 85 manufacturers in 19 countries.
Designed for members and MCAP participants, join this webinar for a deep dive into the latest findings from the upcoming MCAP 2025 Annual Impact Report, and explore how the program is accelerating decarbonization across the industry.
Designed for members and MCAP participants, join this webinar for a deep dive into the latest findings from the upcoming MCAP 2025 Annual Impact Report, and explore how the program is accelerating decarbonization across the industry.
Cascale shared MCAP and Higg FEM learnings at The Komar Supplier Sustainability Forum.
The Komar Supplier Sustainability Forum recently convened 70 participants from across the consumer goods industry in China. Cascale’s speakers included Nicole Lee-Kauer, manager, Manufacturer Climate Action Program (MCAP); and Peony Tam, manager, Global Membership Development APAC.
Key Takeaways
With a global reach of 250 Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, Komar has made public decarbonization commitments, including to reduce Scope 3 emissions by 27.5 percent by 2030. In a dedicated decarbonization session, Cascale’s Lee-Kauer shared the importance of MCAP to help Komar’s Chinese suppliers get started in their decarbonization journey.
Lee-Kauer and Tam were joined by Tiffany Leung, customer success associate – Hong Kong at Worldly, and together they encouraged suppliers to transform data from the Higg Facility Environmental Module (Higg FEM), delivered through Worldly’s global technology platform, into business value, while empowering them to take greater ownership for their sustainability performance. The session highlighted useful resources like the Higg Index Learning Center, an open resource that shares practical guidance and operational examples for utilizing the tool. Rather than a tick-box exercise or response to brand-driven demand, suppliers were encouraged to understand that accurate data can support their own operational improvement and long-term business value.
The session also highlighted ongoing confusion. In a quick poll, the majority of attendees were unclear about the shared relationship between Worldly and Cascale. The speakers clarified their complementary roles within the ecosystem: The Higg Index frameworks, modules, and methodologies are stewarded and governed by Cascale and implemented globally through the Worldly sustainability and supply chain intelligence platform.
In the presentation, Lee-Kauer and Tam emphasized that Cascale offers both a like-minded and committed sustainability community and mutual support network for manufacturers. They highlighted the scale and relevance of Cascale as a community, showcasing a breadth of brand and manufacturer members.
Learn more about MCAP today! Join one of our upcoming information session webinars.
Learn more about MCAP today! Join one of our upcoming information session webinars.
