Three in Five Irish Consumers More Likely to Support Businesses Committed to Climate and Nature – BITCI
BITCI launch new Business Pact to drive action on net zero and nature positive
Three in five Irish consumers are more likely to support businesses committed to climate and nature. That’s according to Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI), who surveyed consumers ahead of the launch of their new collective action campaign today – Accelerate, The Business Pact on Climate and Nature. This new Pact urges action to address the interconnected climate and nature crises.
Within Accelerate, The Business Pact on Climate and Nature, businesses are asked to set an ambitious net-zero target by 2050 if not earlier (approved by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) and to develop a Climate Transition Plan to guide and track implementation. This Pact is building on the success of BITCI’s Low Carbon Pledge which commenced in 2018 and ends this year. The Low Carbon Pledge required signatories to set science-based targets by the end of 2024. In partnership with PwC, an annual report was produced to monitor progress.
The closing report found in total:
- 62 large companies across multiple sectors stayed the course over the lifetime of the pledge;
- Of these companies 81% have now fully set science-based targets, are waiting approval or have formally made the commitment to the SBTi process.
Accelerate, The Business Pact on Climate and Nature is innovative, unique and robust. It will adopt a wide lens by focusing on action in nine key leverage areas: Nature, Scope 3, Just Transition, Decarbonisation, Targets, Finance, Advocacy, Risk and Governance.
Speaking at the launch of Accelerate, The Business Pact on Climate and Nature at BITCI’s annual CEO Forum, Tomás Sercovich, CEO BITCI said:
“We are pleased the 2018-2024 Low Carbon Pledge demonstrated the power of collective action in setting targets and raised the ambition to lower emissions. Businesses are evolving and it is no surprise consumers demand more action and transparency. The impact of climate change and loss of biodiversity is stark. 2023 was the hottest year on record and likely to be surpassed again this year. It is clear time is running out, and decisive action is needed”.
“Accelerate, The Business Pact for Climate and Nature is novel by driving forward a new phase of change through a holistic approach across business operations and ensuring a company’s targets are achieved through detailed and specific Climate Transition Plans. Being a cross sectoral network, BITCI is uniquely placed to facilitate a community of practice and build a Centre of Excellence to share challenges, solutions and best practices among the businesses participating.”
Pact signatories will benefit from access to world-class guidance on developing robust Climate Transition Plans as well as the opportunity to benchmark against peers on the nine Accelerator Areas. An annually co-created Insights Paper will serve to address national blockages to decarbonisation and amplify pathways for action as well as best-practice examples. According to BITCI, being accountable and open about their progress to net zero as well as regularly reviewing their plan will improve their effectiveness and efficacy in achieving their targets.
Mr Sercovich added “The journey to decarbonisation and nature positive is complex and challenging and becoming more regulated, with compliance to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive imminent. Accelerate, The Business Pact for Climate and Nature is open to businesses with different levels of maturity and acts as an incentive for them to receive support and guidance on this major process of business model transformation. The systems change needed requires working collaboratively if we are serious about decarbonisation that will leave no-one behind in our society.”
Ireland’s Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 set a legally binding target of a 51% reduction in emissions by 2030, based on 2018 levels, and a net zero target by 2050. Businesses must align their net zero trajectory to ensure Ireland meets these targets. The businesses who sign up to Accelerate, The Business Pact for Climate and Nature will demonstrate their leadership in sustainability, be more appealing to consumers, stay ahead of evolving regulations and be committed to operating in a net-zero and fair future.