* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
There’s no more waiting for every government, no more ‘we’ll do it if they do it’ – we all need to escalate our actions to get emissions down. Right down.
Helen Clarkson is the chief executive of The Climate Group.
As another summer of heatwaves across Europe draws to a close, it’s tempting to take a deep breath of autumnal air and move on. But even if the temperature on the streets is no longer getting you hot under the collar, the climate trends driving these weather patterns should be. Everyone should be thinking seriously about what this level of global heating means for businesses.
Though we at The Climate Group work with 250 multinationals companies, there are thousands of large businesses still unprepared for the scale and speed of change coming.
We urgently need to contain global heating. To do that we need to halve global emissions by 2030.
There’s no more waiting for every government, no more ‘we’ll do it if they do it’, or ‘but what about China?’ – we all need to escalate our actions to get emissions down. Right down. Halved in a decade, and more beyond.
Halving global emissions is going to be the story of the next 10 years.
This is going to be the climate decade.
Businesses that aren’t ready will disappear. They will be buffeted by changing demands; the best talent will steer clear. Investors have already started to price-in climate risk. If you think creative destruction was just a theoretical part of your economics degree, talk to people at Blockbuster or Kodak about how external existential threats can play out.
As a business executive, you need to do your part to help the world hit the goal of net zero by 2050 because it’s a real threat.
So how can you help your business to negotiate this existential threat? Like any business plan, this ambitious goal needs to be broken down to clear achievable actions with deadlines.
Here is nine steps every large business can take to prepare for The Climate Decade:
1. Commit to using 100% renewable electricity now
It’s cheaper and more popular with employees, and businesses in our RE100 programme are stimulating some pretty amazing solar and wind investments.
2. Commit all your cars and smaller trucks in going 100% electric by 2030
Business fleets are a big chunk of the auto market and EVs are already cheaper over their lifespan. So why are you not already joining programs like EV100?
3. All property/plants should use smart energy systems by 2030
Energy efficiency is no longer boring, it’s mood lighting LEDs, remote sensing, data and AI. And you save lots of money too.
4. Demand the same from all your big suppliers
If you can do it and it cuts costs, so can they. Admit it, it’s fun to challenge suppliers.
5. From the canteen to the car park, lead by example with employees and customers
Don’t be chauffeured in a gas guzzler - make it a plug-in. Ditch the plastic, take the beef off the menu (burger lovers will get over it), and ban domestic flights in Europe.
6. Divest pensions and other investments from fossil fuels
If your business is dropping oil and gas like a hot potato, won’t everyone else do the same soon, too?
7. Don’t duck it, if your business is based on carbon
Easier said than done, but airlines, steel, and cement companies need to make some big decisions and investments during the next decade to not be curtailed in the 2030s.
8. Align your lobbying with your pro-climate public positions
Only lobby to improve climate policies, not stop them, or you will be called out. Ensure your sector bodies are pro-climate or leave them and set-up new ones.
9. Align your long-term business strategy with a net-zero emission by 2050 and a maximum of a 1.5C warming world
Don’t wait for government. Join the Science Based Targets Initiative now to give your team the planning certainty they need.
The combined impact of implementing these will also shift global markets and happen to help save the planet.
Will you play your part? What will you do today?
