4 October 2018
Corporate Leaders Group Calls on Governments to Aim for Net Zero Emissions by 2050
story highlights

The Prince of Wales’s Corporate Leaders Group issued a statement calling on the governments of advanced economies to develop strategies that will achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The statement highlights a lack of long-term signals and supporting policies from governments, which, the leaders note, would otherwise serve to avoid stranded assets and misinvestments.

At a side event highlighting the statement, Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever, outlined actions companies can take in order to start down the path to zero net emissions.

12 September 2018: The Prince of Wales’s Corporate Leaders Group issued a statement calling on the governments of advanced economies to develop “strong, credible and appropriate” strategies that will achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest. A side event at the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS), hosted by the Group and The B Team, highlighted the call.

As a GCAS press release notes, CEOs at the Summit indicated that without “ambitious and unequivocal targets set by governments,” businesses will not reduce their carbon emissions to zero or deliver on the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change. However, companies such as Salesforce and others have taken it upon themselves to achieve zero net emissions by 2050.

The Corporate Leaders Group consists primarily of European business leaders from a variety of sectors working to increase their resilience and reduce emissions, in line with a transition to a more sustainable economy. The position statement highlights a lack of long-term signals and supporting policies from governments, which, the leaders note, would otherwise serve to avoid stranded assets and misinvestments.

The statement calls on governments to develop strategies that:

  • are consistent with the Paris Agreement’s goals and the SDGs;
  • maximize certainty for businesses, investors and society as a whole;
  • are developed and implemented in an open and transparent way, in partnership with all stakeholders; and
  • will be regularly reviewed “in line with the Paris Agreement cycle.”

Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever, and The B Team Chair, outlined actions companies can take in order to start down the path to net zero emissions, including: winning commitment from the top; setting science-based targets; “transforming your company and driving that transformation throughout your value chain”; and “using your voice for advocacy.” [Aiming for Zero: Long-term Certainty for Economic Prosperity] [Prince of Wales’s Corporate Leaders Group Press Release] [GCAS Press Release]


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