Net zero – hold firm or fold?

One moment, we are being told by president Trump to ‘drill baby, drill’ and (echoed by Reform in the UK) to abandon Net Zero; the next we hear that the Scottish Government are considering ‘The Ecocide Prevention (Scotland) Bill’ – legislation that aims to deter long term or mass environmental damage with potential 20-year prison terms for business owners.

In England, the Labour Government have significantly scaled back their Net Zero Investment Plan but remain committed to their targets of zero emissions by 2050.

The 2050 target in the UK is legally binding but it seems likely that other self-imposed targets will be watered down. Several major organisations – including banks, energy companies, airlines and technology companies – have already scaled back or abandoned their net zero commitments citing a mix of political, financial and operational reasons.

So where does that leave organisations? Do they soft-pedal like Shell, Morgan Stanley, Unilever and Google, to name but a few, or do they steadfastly continue with their carbon reduction plans, like Astra Zeneca, Rolls-Royce, Aviva, HSBS, M&S and others?

To help senior leaders grapple with these future-defining issues, the One Planet Standard offers a flexible methodology that enables senior leaders to get on board with their own plans and work to their own timetables, confident they are taking their people with them as they double down on the challenges.

For this special event we will be joined by Virginia Isaac, adviser to the One Planet Centre and former CEO of The Inspiring Future Foundation, who will focus on how, in a world that is being encouraged to push back on environmentalism and net zero, The One Planet Standard can help by facilitating communication and achieving buy-in.

Our other special guest will be Simon Stallard, Sustainability Programme Lead at NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board, who will share insights learned while overseeing delivery and implementation of his ICS’s Green Plan.

And GGI CEO Professor Andrew Corbett-Nolan will talk about some of the governance implications of sustainability. What steps can you be taking now to ensure your organisation is equipped to meet this existential challenge?

Despite the dramatic events on the world stage – or perhaps because of them – the climate emergency is not going away any time soon. Whether the focus is on adaptation or resilience, efficiency measures or customer demands, there are many things that organisations can do to establish their own roadmaps towards a better future for all. We hope you will be able to join us on Wednesday 9 July to discuss some of them.