Hot on the heels of Ceres’ LEAD on Climate
2020
virtual advocacy event last week — during which over 250 business leaders and
investors called on the US Congress to lay groundwork for a more resilient,
sustainable economy post COVID-19 — and echoing similar calls by groups such as
the Under2
Coalition
of 220 state and regional governments, 155 global companies have today released
a joint statement urging governments
around the world to align their COVID-19 economic aid and recovery efforts with
the latest climate science.
With a combined market cap of over US$2.4 trillion and representing over 5
million employees, the signatories — which include
Adobe,
Burberry,
Carlsberg Group, Coca-Cola European Partners, Colgate
Palmolive, EDF
Group, Electrolux, H&M
Group, Hewlett Packard
Enterprise,
Mars, Nestlé, Orange,
Salesforce, Telefonica, The Co-op,
Unilever,
Vattenfall
and Vodafone Group — are all part of the Science Based Targets
initiative (SBTi) and its Business
Ambition for 1.5°C campaign. Together, they are amplifying the growing
call
from leaders across all industries and sectors for the widespread adoption of
policies that will help future-proof the global economy — by supporting efforts
to hold global temperature rise to within 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, in
line with reaching net-zero
emissions
well before 2050.
The statement comes as governments around the world are deciding how to direct
trillions of dollars’ worth of stimulus packages and implement new policies and
strategies
to help their economies recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. In
the coming weeks, several major economies will make key decisions in their
recovery efforts, including the European Union Recovery Plan, new stimulus
packages from the US and India, and the G7 Heads of State summit in
June.
According to an Oxford University
study
released earlier this month, recovery policies that address the COVID and
climate crises in
tandem
will reduce vulnerability to future shocks and disasters, create jobs, reduce
emissions and greatly improve air quality. According to an SBTi impact
report
released in December, just 285 of the hundreds of companies now working toward
science-based emissions-reduction goals through SBTi — which, collectively, are
responsible for more than 752 million metric tons of CO2-equivalent emissions
per year from their operations (more than the combined annual emissions
of France and Spain) — will, through these commitments, reduce 265
million metric tons of CO2e (approximately equivalent to shutting down 68
coal-fired power plants) — an average annual reduction of 35 percent compared to
base year emissions.
“It is imperative that we not only restart the world economy – but also reset
it. It would be a tragedy if after spending $10-20 trillion of public money we
simply rebuild the same unequal, vulnerable and high-carbon economy we had
before,” said Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO of World Resources
Institute and SBTi Board member. “We applaud the leaders of these 155
companies, who are not only committed to resetting their own companies but are
also demanding that the world’s governments act in the light of the best science
and best economics which shows that climate-smart policies will create more jobs
and stimulate resilient, inclusive economic growth.”
At the C40 World Mayors Summit in October, mayors of 94 major cities
recognized a global climate emergency and announced their support for a Global
Green New
Deal
to lead the world toward a resilient economy — time will tell if governments
push forward or resort to business as usual post COVID.
Read more about the call to action and see the full list of signatories
here
…
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published May 19, 2020 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST