The world has seen some stark evidence of the warming climate during 2020 – from another set of record temperatures, reducing polar ice cover, record rainfall and tragic fires in the Amazon and across Australia. Extreme weather events have severe impact on business, society and ecosystems, and pose an increasing threat as our climate continues to warm. Despite the Covid-19 Pandemic, businesses remain keenly aware of their responsibilities in the face of this largest of all challenges.
Governments around the world have put legislative measures in place to encourage or even force better business practices – from landfill taxes to green tariffs. These make it more expensive for businesses to operate wasteful and inefficient processes. More importantly, the consumer is increasingly well-informed about which companies “get it” and make buying decisions accordingly.
The UK Government has set out a series of Carbon Budgets to help track progress towards its targets. This demonstrates that there is still an important gap to be closed for the next three measurement periods through to the sixth budget period ending in 2037.
With the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) now rescheduled to take place in Glasgow in November of 2021, the UK Government is committed to taking a leadership role – pushing a broad front of new legislative measures which feature both carrots and sticks in the fight to meet Net Zero targets. In November 2020, the Government published its Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution with the ambition to “Build back better, support green jobs, and accelerate our path to Net Zero.”
It is true to say that the drive and commitment towards a low carbon world is now in the mainstream.
Unfortunately, many organisations see the drive to sustainability as being a burden on costs and time, though in fact this is far from the truth. There is significant evidence that businesses that adopt robust sustainability practices become more resilient and financially secure. This is because businesses misunderstand the level of cost that may be involved.
Though the will to demonstrate a sustainable business may be evident, how to do this is not always obvious due to a lack of resource and knowledge. And of course, time is a commodity that is in short supply for many businesses, this is where Auditel can help.