5 June 2018: Co-Chairs of the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS) California Governor Jerry Brown, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa and Mahindra Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anand Mahindra have challenged businesses, cities, states and regions to step up their reporting on and progress in reducing emissions ahead of the Summit. Two businesses have joined the Climate Neutral Now initiative.

The GCAS Co-Chairs’ challenge, issued on 5 June, aims to have at least 300 more disclosures by September 2018, calling for universal and standardized reporting by all governments and entities worldwide by 2030. Greater disclosure regarding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is critical to holding governments and businesses accountable for meeting emission reduction targets, as well as for tracking progress towards meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change, including for worldwide emissions to begin trending down by 2020 to maintain the global temperature rise to well below 2°C above preindustrial levels and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C.

The GCAS will convene from 12-14 September 2018 in San Francisco, US, under the theme ‘Taking Ambition to the Next Level.’

Thus far, more than 570 cities with a combined population of 608 million people, 100 states and regions across 88 countries, and 6,300 companies with 55% of global market capitalization have already measured and reported their climate impact through the CDP, formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project. These disclosures are displayed on CDP’s States and Regions Climate Tracker.

The GCAS will convene from 12-14 September 2018 in San Francisco, US, under the theme ‘Taking Ambition to the Next Level.’ The Summit will showcase climate action and new commitments in support of the Paris Agreement focused on: healthy energy systems; inclusive economic growth; sustainable communities; land and ocean stewardship; and transformative climate investments. [UNFCCC Press Release] [GCAS Press Release] [GCAS Website]

Two companies that help businesses reduce their emissions have joined the UNFCCC Climate Neutral Now pledge. They will measure and reduce their own emissions, and offset the rest using certified emission reductions (CERs) from projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

The first company, MEXICO2, of the Mexican Stock Exchange, supports the transition to a green economy in Latin America using its carbon trading platform and green bonds. The other company, Ecoterrae Global Solutions, based in Seville, Spain, supports emission reduction, in line with Spain’s climate goals, by providing technical support and helping companies and organizations identify opportunities, implement projects and obtain financing. Ecoterrae has helped implement more than 160 projects, which generate carbon units purchased by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment. [MEXICO2 Website] [Ecoterrae Global Solutions Website]