Climate Action 100+, last call for the hundred most polluting companies
Environment — di Valentina Neri
From Paris, 225 investors managing more than 26 trillion dollars launch a very clear appeal to the most polluting companies.
Climate Action 100+, last call for the hundred most polluting companies
From Paris, 225 investors managing more than 26 trillion dollars launch a very clear appeal to the most polluting companies.
In the wake of the One Planet Summit in Paris, organised by France, the United Nations and the World Bank, there are many proposals and initiatives on the table. One of these concerns major polluters very closely — those companies that contribute in a heavy and structural way to greenhouse gas emissions at a global level (and, therefore, to climate change). It is precisely on them that the Climate Action 100+ initiative turns its spotlight, signed by 225 investors managing assets worth 26,300 billion dollars.
Congratulations and thanks to the #ClimateAction100 team for the launch of the the global investor initiative @ActOnClimate100 at #OnePlanet on second anniversary of #ParisAgreement. #ActOnClimate #ClimateAction @CeresNews @IGCC_Update @IIGCCnews @PRI_News @AIGCC_update
Which are the hundred most polluting companies in the world
Climate Action 100+ is a five-year initiative through which investors from around the world engage with the companies most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions. In this first phase, the focus is on a group of one hundred companies, selected on the basis of data provided by Cdp. The list, published on the initiative's official website, includes giants in transport (such as Airbus Group, Boeing Company and Suzuki Motor Corporation), fossil fuels (Gazprom, Petrobras, Imperial Oil and many others) and electricity (Suncor Energy, Duke Energy Corporation and so on), but not only.
The demands of Climate Action 100+
But what, in concrete terms, is being asked of these large companies? The 225 investors have established three key points. The first: to improve their governance process on the risks of climate change and the measures to address them. The second: to take concrete steps to reduce emissions across the entire supply chain, in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement, which aims to keep the increase in average global temperatures below 2 degrees centigrade compared to pre-industrial levels. Finally, to be more transparent with their investors about the potential impact of climate change on their business model, in line with the final recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures and with sector-specific guidelines, where applicable. Among the signatories of the open letter are names very well known in the world of finance, from Allianz Global Investors to BNP Paribas Asset Management, via HSBC Global Asset Management and Mirova.
Tutti gli investimenti sostenibili promessi a Parigi per il clima
What happened at the One Planet Summit in Paris
French President Emmanuel Macron symbolically chose the date of 12 December, the second anniversary of the Paris Agreement, to convene the international community in the French capital. As a kind of "second chapter" of the Cop23 in Bonn, the One Planet Summit had a stated aim: to find the funding needed to tackle climate change. Under the principle that — to borrow the words of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres — "green business is good business".
Many announcements were made during the plenary, which hosted 55 heads of state and government (with some notable absences, such as American President Donald Trump, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni and Chancellor Angela Merkel), as well as figures from the worlds of organisations and business. Among the most important developments, the World Bank's announcement is undoubtedly worth mentioning: from 2019 it will no longer finance any oil or gas exploration and production activities. The insurance company Axa, having already abandoned coal, will withdraw 3.6 billion euros from fossil fuels and will exit the tar sands and pipeline business. Meanwhile, a group of philanthropists (including Michael Bloomberg, Bill Gates and Richard Branson) has pledged to increase funds earmarked for environmental initiatives.