海角视频

When it comes to the climate, we believe in the power of action. London Climate Action Week (LCAW), an annual festival that focuses on global solutions to climate change, was an opportunity for 海角视频 to learn and contribute to the power of collective climate action.  

The 海角视频 team was out in force at LCAW, which has firmly placed itself as one of the set-piece global events in this area, bringing together leading public sector authorities, climate NGOs and businesses working together to accelerate ambitious action on the climate transition.  

From events by , and through to the , and (TNFD), this year鈥檚 LCAW had an impressive breadth and depth of dialogue.

The presence of chief sustainability officers, and sustainability and business leaders from many of our trailblazing public and private sector clients, was instructive as to how important this area of work is. 

There was an overriding sentiment that the role of business in climate action is key. When the public and private sectors work constructively together it is possible to scale up and replicate real world solutions. Here鈥檚 a snapshot of our insights and takeaways of LCAW.

LEADERSHIP: the next five years are critical for delivering on 2030 commitments 鈥� Duncan Price, sustainability/climate global lead 

The science isn鈥檛 changing. Evidence mounts of the impact that a changing climate has, right now, on every corner of the world. This is the moment to accelerate action, not stop.  

The 28^th COP conference in Dubai was an important staging post in global climate politics 鈥� we now need to implement the outcomes of COP28 consensus. It was agreed that Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) need to be updated to align with the Paris Agreement by February 2025 and COP29 will focus on reaching a financial agreement. Yet every dollar of public money needs to leverage $3-4 of private, so mobilising private sector capital quickly is the key.  

Despite political instability, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is driving an investment boom in the US and much of the legislation for European Green Deal has passed. 90% of global GDP is covered by a net zero target. The economic drivers are real and gaining momentum. The role of business is ever more critical in driving a climate transition. With many leading businesses committed to net zero and mobilised for action, the road to 2030 is set for a rapid scale up of investment and the capturing of business benefits (including value creation, reduced risk and long-term competitive advantage). 

INVESTMENT: Who wants what and when? 鈥� Margarethe Theseira, head of consulting, UK  

At both the 3CI and Climate Investment Summits at LCAW, there were clear messages about the size of investment opportunities arising from climate transition and celebrations of projects. This included the 20-year joint venture partnership between Bristol City Council, Ameresco and Vattenfall Heat UK, which is set to deliver over 拢1bn of investment into energy across Bristol.  

To unlock investment at scale requires politics, investors and businesses to align mandates and to share a common understanding of how risks are perceived and priced, expected timelines for returns and clarity in delivery models. There was a genuine expectation that after the UK election, greater policy certainty will provide the stability that investors require to ramp up their investments.鈥� 

Now is the time to get on the front foot, by planning specific investment opportunities tied to investment-friendly climate policies. 

RESILIENCE: Adaptation and resilience planning must start now to minimise long term risk 鈥� Roger Savage, group director, strategy and plans

The Climate Innovation Forum roundtable explored opportunities that will unlock adaptation finance and highlighted the challenge and opportunities associated with taking action. Bringing to bear our work 鈥� spanning from UK adaptive pathways planning for cities, to the challenges of small island developing states 鈥� we support calls for a systems-based approach at national and local level. It is essential to consider risks, vulnerability and capacity, but also the opportunities brought by early investment. 

Mainstreaming resilience actions into programmes and budgets to deliver change is key but is not sufficient to tackle the sheer scale of the challenge.

Roger Savage, group director, strategy and plans

This goes beyond avoided damage costs from extreme events, and rising costs to communities, people, infrastructure and services of a changing climate. In fact, it extends to the potential opportunities linked to acting early including health, economic opportunities and environmental benefits.  

Action on climate risk should be considered in conjunction with nature recovery and net zero to deliver success in areas such as tackling overheating, and nature-based solutions for flood risk. How much is enough? We must work to establish the link between the appropriate level of investment and type of adaptation options with consideration of the pattern of risks. This includes both average changes in temperature and rainfall 鈥� as well as worst-case scenarios and impact of extreme events.  

What is needed now? We believe it is the development of partnerships and programmes to deliver the interventions needed, with effective funding and incentives to enable delivery. Mainstreaming resilience actions into programmes and budgets to deliver change is key but is not sufficient to tackle the sheer scale of the challenge. We can see that innovation in partnerships and funding is starting to happen, but there is too often a mismatch between commitment, finance and implementation. This is holding back progress, but a strong willingness in the climate community to bridge the gap is evident and encouraging. 

DICLOSURES: Corporate disclosures can drive valuable business decisions鈥�鈥� Jane Madden, lead ESG partner

Across all events at LCAW, there was a golden thread of discussion on corporate sustainability reporting as a catalyst for action. While non-financial reporting can be complex and imperfect 鈥� and companies are increasingly wary about being called out for lack of authenticity 鈥� the talk was of leading corporates embracing an open and honest approach, acknowledging uncertainties and dependencies.  

Now more than ever, ESG data provide useful and necessary information to assess and manage risk while identifying business opportunities.

Jane Madden, lead ESG partner

While ESG disclosure burden seems to be increasing, (not only because of investor and regulatory demand, but also from customers) the consolidation of International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards as the prevailing global framework, and rise of software solutions and AI, can lessen and better manage the internal resources necessary to collect and report ESG data. 

More importantly, ESG disclosure can provide meaningful, decision-useful insights that influence strategic decision-making, risk management and investment choices. It also promotes transparency and accountability, which can enhance a company鈥檚 reputation and overall business performance. 

It is important to keep in mind that double materiality assessments are essential for using ESG data to provide actionable insights. It is time we start treating non-financial data as equal to financial data, internally and externally. ESG disclosure forces accountability for management teams that are either not progressing on ESG issues or that are generating negative impacts through business operations. It has also been shown to have a positive impact on performance and board oversight.  

Now more than ever, ESG data provide useful and necessary information to assess and manage risk while identifying business opportunities. Finally, keep an eye on nature and TNFD. There were murmurs of it being included in future ESG disclosure regulations. 

NATURE: Leading organisations are getting ready for nature 鈥� Samantha Holliday, head of nature and biodiversity

The importance and predicted future impact of the Task Force for Nature-related Financial Disclosures cannot be overstated. TNFD is redefining the relationship between business, finance and nature, with 416 committed adopters voluntarily reporting against the new framework for financial years 23/24/25. This includes listed companies with a combined market capitalisation of 拢6trillion, which is 2.5 x the value of all shares on the London Stock Exchange. Additionally, it includes 114 financial institutions with $16trillion in Assets Under Management (AUM) representing a quarter of the world鈥檚 systemically important banks (GSIBs). 

ISSB has announced that its nature-related work will draw on TNFD as part of building a global sustainability reporting baseline covering 50 jurisdictions. TNFD guidance now covers eight real economy sectors and includes value chain analysis, addressing upstream and downstream material issues, data analytics and traceability. Draft guidance has been published for engineering, construction and real estate.  

It was standing room only at the TNFD adopters celebration and sector guidance launch at LCAW. The willingness to engage is clear. So, what have we learned so far from early adopters on how corporates should get started?  

There was common agreement that TNFD can help drive corporate strategy and nature transition plans. The advice is to start by understanding the business reasons for adopting TNFD. This may be closely linked to purpose and highlight opportunities for the climate and nature transition investments as well as the business cost of doing nothing.  

For those in the built environment, TNFD is reinforcing biodiversity net gain (BNG) efforts and increasing transparency on this important topic. People collaborating on this topic recognise that they cannot isolate nature from other climate work. The climate crisis and biodiversity crisis are inextricably interlinked.  

By analysing their own operations, organisations can quickly recognise key no-regret issues. It鈥檚 doable, similar to the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and helps to identify significant business opportunities. This is an exciting and fast-moving area for organisations seeking to be leaders in sustainable business.  

Next steps

In conclusion, there are key specific actions for clients across all these areas: 

Our integrated team of experts and advisors cover corporate leadership, economics, decarbonisation, adaptation, ESG, nature and a wide set of connected sustainability topics spanning strategy, implementation and reporting. 

If you would like help with any of the above, then please contact 海角视频.