Tracking the climate transition is no easy task, but Klimatkollen is making it possible. Launched in 2022, this citizen-driven platform collects and visualises emissions data to hold decision-makers accountable. With its expansion into corporate climate data, Klimatkollen is becoming a crucial tool for individuals, businesses, and policymakers aiming to stay on track with the Paris Agreement.
Klimatkollen began with frustration. Co-founders Ola Spännar and Frida Berry Eklund were tired of the difficulty in finding clear, accessible information about local governments' progress—or lack thereof—on emissions reductions. “We were both angry about how hard it was to track whether governments were actually cutting emissions in line with their promises,” says Spännar. Recognising a gap in public knowledge, they launched Klimatkollen in March 2022, providing climate data and carbon budgets for all 290 Swedish municipalities.
The platform ranked municipalities on their climate performance, helping citizens understand where their local governments stood in the race to net zero. A year later, with funding from the Postcode Lottery Foundation, they expanded the dataset to include climate solutions and worked with local media to promote data-driven reporting on emissions.
A major challenge soon became apparent: while municipal climate data was publicly available, corporate emissions data was often hidden behind paywalls, buried in sustainability reports, or simply not disclosed. This lack of transparency made it difficult to hold businesses accountable. In 2024, Klimatkollen secured support from Google.org’s Impact Challenge to address this issue.
“We’re using AI to collect, interpret, and communicate emissions data from companies’ sustainability reports,” explains Spännar. The aim is to create a global transparency platform where citizens can track both local climate transitions and compare corporate climate performance. To maximise impact, Klimatkollen has partnered with Wikimedians for Sustainable Development to upload their data to Wikipedia, ensuring it reaches a wider audience. Additionally, they are collaborating with the University of Zurich to expand corporate emissions tracking across Europe.
One of Klimatkollen’s key strengths is making complex climate data accessible to the public. The platform not only tracks emissions but also projects future trends based on current progress. “Nearly all municipalities are off-target,” says Spännar. “We show what will happen if they continue like today. That data can be used by citizens to hold local leaders accountable, start petitions, or drive local campaigns.”
With the expansion into corporate data, Klimatkollen is also looking to engage financial stakeholders. Investors, both institutional and individual, are increasingly seeking information about corporate climate risks. By providing transparent emissions data, Klimatkollen aims to influence financial decisions and push companies toward real climate action.
AI is a game-changer for Klimatkollen. Their AI tool, Garbo AI, is designed to extract emissions data from sustainability reports with high accuracy. However, balancing speed and precision is a challenge. “AI is a delicate dance,” Spännar admits. “We want to be 100% correct, but we also need to get a lot of data out quickly to drive change.”
Beyond data collection, Klimatkollen is exploring AI-driven content creation, such as automated climate analysis, podcasts, and animations. They are also developing AI models to assess local governments’ climate mitigation plans, providing deeper insights into public sector climate commitments.
Despite its success, Klimatkollen faces significant obstacles. Access to reliable and comprehensive climate data remains a major hurdle. “A lot of the data is locked away in complicated databases or hidden behind paywalls,” says Spännar. In response, Klimatkollen has worked with organisations like Naturskyddsföreningen and Klimatklubben to crowdsource missing data, such as local government climate action plans.
Another issue is the lag in emissions reporting, with municipal data often being nearly two years old. This delay makes it difficult for decision-makers to respond effectively. Klimatkollen hopes to integrate more real-time data, potentially leveraging independent sources like satellite imagery to provide up-to-date insights.
Public engagement is at the heart of Klimatkollen’s mission. The platform actively works through social media and partnerships with NGOs to reach a broader audience. “We want more climate activists and engaged citizens to use our data for local advocacy,” says Spännar. The addition of corporate emissions data is expected to attract new users interested in the climate impact of specific companies and industries.
Beyond Sweden, Klimatkollen has its sights set on international expansion. The challenge will be adapting to different regions where emissions data may be less accessible. However, Spännar is optimistic: “We foresee a huge surge in citizens helping to find missing or hidden data. We want to be at the forefront of this movement for change.”
As Klimatkollen grows, maintaining trust and credibility is a top priority. The platform operates on an open-source model, ensuring all data is referenced back to its original source. If errors are identified, they are promptly corrected. This transparency is crucial as Klimatkollen moves toward global expansion.
The next steps include scaling up to more countries, establishing new research partnerships—such as with Climate AI Nordics and Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich—and exploring potential revenue streams from corporate clients. “We need to grow quickly because the climate crisis is urgent,” says Spännar.
Ultimately, Klimatkollen’s success will be measured by its ability to drive climate action. “We already have lots of examples of how our data has been used to push for change, but we want more,” Spännar says. By providing clear, accessible, and actionable climate data, Klimatkollen is empowering citizens to hold governments and businesses accountable—one data point at a time.
