In 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a Special Report on the potential impacts of global warming above 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels.
In May 2022, the World Meteorological Organization announced there is a 50% chance that this threshold would be reached in the next five years, with a 93% chance of any of the next five years being the warmest year on record.
The effects of climate change are already here – and it’s unlikely that things will get better over time unless drastic action is taken.
Many business and corporate organisations are already overhauling business processes, reaffirming sustainability strategies, and investing in climate tech in order to stave off the impacts of the climate crisis. However it’s important to ask ourselves: what are the values and ethics underpinning these initiatives?
How many businesses are simply adopting adhoc climate-conscious decisions as a method of risk management, rather than as part of a permanent long-term strategy? How can companies innovate with the health of the planet and well-being of communities in mind, rather than just focusing on profits and financial outcomes? And how can companies seek out business opportunities amidst the climate crisis that can benefit their business as well as generate a genuine and meaningful impact for communities around them?
As FSG’s Managing Director and Head of Asia Rishi Agarwal puts it, “to make meaningful positive change on climate, business leaders need to understand the intersection between the technical and the human”. Beyond simply reacting to problems as they crop up or seeing these occurrences as risks, organisations need to embrace a more humanistic ethos in order to truly create value for communities around the world.
Here are some questions to help organisations begin the process.
What does your business stand for?
The values, vision, and mission of a business ultimately affects all aspects of it. It may be time for your organisation to take a step back, relook at what it is you’ve been doing, and ask yourself why you do it.
If your organisation claims to do corporate social responsibility (CSR) – are these initiatives done with a genuine desire to help others, or simply to boost your overall brand image? The process of relooking your business’ core purpose can be grueling and even polarising, but it is the first step to realigning your business goals and reprioritising sustainability.
Who are the stakeholders your business serves?
The term “stakeholder capitalism” has been talked about recently, especially in response to “shareholder capitalism”. The former proposes that corporations and organisations should serve the interests of all their stakeholders including regular employees and the general public, whereas the latter focuses on maximising shareholder value and profits.
Though opinions on stakeholder capitalism are split, the current interest in the term suggests a larger sea change towards the perceived role of businesses within society itself.
In order to craft initiatives that genuinely work to improve the climate crisis, business leaders need to reach out to all stakeholders including those whose daily lives are most affected by climate change. This should include marginalised communities such as women and children, especially those living in coastal regions or developing nations who stand to be disproportionately affected by the climate crisis.
Business leaders should also integrate financial, social, and environmental goals from the start rather than including the latter two as an afterthought. Only in this way can practical action plans be drawn up that will result in tangible benefits for the communities they affect.
Who are the partners you’re bringing to the table?
“Your network is your net worth” – this saying has become somewhat of a LinkedIn cliche, but it still rings true. Partnerships and resource-sharing are key to making a tangible difference to your stakeholders, and your commitment to combating the climate crisis is reflected in who you choose to collaborate with when launching your initiatives.
Entering into collaboration or coalitions with other corporations working towards the same goal is a good way to access the resources, capital, and technological innovation needed to make a real difference on the world.
Through the right corporate partnerships with other innovative, forward-thinking, and future-focused organisations, it’s possible to embark on a new human- and sustainability-centered approach to combating the climate crisis.
