Wolfgang Blau

Triodos Bank and Triodos Investment Management - together with 160 other financial institutions representing 15.5 USD trillion combined assets- are calling for an ambitious international treaty to end plastic pollution by backing the Finance Statement on Plastic Pollution. #PlasticPollution exacerbates the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, with plastic projected to double and account for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. By signing the Finance Statement on Plastic Pollution, we are calling on governments for an ambitious international treaty to end plastic pollution ahead of the fourth round of international negotiations (#INC4) taking place next week in Canada. A reduction in our economy’s reliance on single-use plastics translates into a reduction of the environmental and public health toll of plastic production, waste management, and pollution throughout plastic supply chains. #BeatPlasticPollution

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New paper out on corporate zero-deforestation commitments (ZDCs) by Georg Winkel and colleagues! 'While corporate ZDCs can be seen as having advanced private governance in the fight against deforestation, more is needed still for effective implementation. Public governance and regulations could play an increasing role in stimulating adoption and implementation of private governance initiatives, like corporate ZDCs.' Find the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gscQHarv This paper addresses knowledge gaps related to implementation of corporate zero deforestation commitments (ZDCs). Drawing on an analytical framework of organizational change, we scrutinize changes and processes internal to a company in adjusting to zero deforestation supply chains. The empirical data consists of 48 online questionnaires and 49 online interviews with actors involved in forest-risk commodity (FRC) supply chains, both internal actors in companies and external actors (e.g., NGOs). Concerning organizational changes, findings show that diverse drivers have triggered companies to adopt ZDCs, but most are external drivers. Organizational change following ZDCs has taken place within companies but only to a limited extent. Our study concludes that while corporate ZDCs can be seen as having advanced private governance in the fight against deforestation, more is needed still for effective implementation. Public governance and regulations could play an increasing role in stimulating adoption and implementation of private governance initiatives, like corporate ZDCs.

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NEWSLETTER | #Impact 5 years ago, in the summer of 2019, we launched Ksapa. 5 years that have gone by in the blink of an eye ... but so packed that it feels like 15! Not just for the Ksapa team, but for the field of #sustainability, which has become much more democratic. 5 years ago, for example, the European Sustainable Finance Plan - which gave rise to the #CSRD, the green taxonomy and the #SFDR - was still at the intention stage. The central banks had just set up the NGFS. The integration of #ESG risks into investment decisions was still far from being the norm. Even if the European Green Deal is now in the spotlight, it has to be said that the development of a sustainable regulatory framework has moved into another dimension. Sign up to continue reading and find out more! In the latest newsletter, we discuss: 👉 Climate Week NYC 2024 👉 #CSRD – Identifying IROs in a double materiality analysis 👉 Addressing the risk of #ForcedLabor in the Green and #JustTransition Value Chains Subscribe here and receive our monthly #newsletter 👉 The newsletter, as always, apprises you of Ksapa's recent and upcoming events and publications! Happy Reading! #Newsletter #Sustainability #ClimateAction #SDGs #BizHumanRights

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"The latest United Nations Sustainable Development Goals report paints a stark picture: We are behind on 80% of our global targets and 30% have stalled completely or gone into reverse, including key targets on poverty, climate and hunger. To have any chance of rescuing the #SDGs, the United Nations says we need to fill a $4.2 trillion funding gap, but global governments are not stepping up. In the last year, official development assistance (ODA) has been cut by many of the biggest global funders, including the U.S., UK, Germany and France. Businesses can play a critical role in filling some of this financial hole and in catalysing government action and public support. Growing stakeholder and consumer demands, along with emerging regulations, are driving more environmental, social and governance (ESG) activity. However, it’s critical that these good intentions achieve the maximum impact." Reuters https://lnkd.in/ewSJakCz

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There are so many ways organisations like PWC and their supply chains can help nature. A great way is to support and invest with organisations like Chiltern Rangers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT), The Woodland Trust and others to take action in their local areas. Working locally reduces travel and creates a better, more connected landscape. Not only can positive activity sessions like Be a Ranger days help directly e.g. tree planting, river cleans or coppicing in the woods; these days are great for teambuilding, health and well being, giving back to the community and much more. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dmm27gDx What stops your company for booking these sessions and making the difference for people, place and nature??

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The Regeneration Field Guide: #regeneration101 #regeneration

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In the 50th episode of Ash Cloud we focus on the climate related violence. Our guest, Peter Schwartzstein, describes this as a messy marriage of climate stress and poor governance. ISIS profited from collapsing agricultural positions to bolster its ranks in Iraq and Syria. The recruitment rate of jihadis was three time higher from villages reliant solely on rain than from similar villages with access to irrigation water. The developed world is not immune, above and beyond the global impacts of migration it has been documented that violence against women in Greece appears to increase almost in lockstep with summer temperates. In the United States, 85% of the mass shootings that occurred in 2022 took place between June and September, with the physiological changes unleashed by higher temperatures appearing to be a determining factor. The migration stories that make the headlines are only the tip of the iceberg. These are based on the 10% of people that flee their homes due to conflict and migrate internationally. The other 90% impact the towns and cities within their countries. However, as it's generally the best educated and wealthiest people that can actually afford to leave this also undermines the governance and financial security of the impacted villages further undermining these societies. You can listen to our conversation here. Ismahane Elouafi Karen Ross Aimable UWIZEYE, PhD Ermias Kebreab Marcelo Mena Fred Krupp Joseph W. McFadden Britt Groosman John Blackburn AO Mick Ryan, AM John Nicholson, General U.S. Army Retired Hayden Montgomery Andy Jarvis Allan Savory Mary Shelman Colin South Maik Kindermann Charles Brooke Kosta Stavreas Sparsha Saha, PhD Anneline Padayachee [PhD] Richard Eckard Tim Benton Andrea Bertaglio David Hughes David Tuck Paula H. Adrian Edwards Francette Geraghty-Dusan Britt Spyrou Louisa Burwood-Taylor Elaine Watson Doc Brown J. Matthew Pryor Claudia Arndt Ben van Delden John Roulac Paul Greive

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💥 More important new plastic research 💥 We've been working on research for Fauna & Flora which analyses plastic credit schemes and explores the scope, risks and uncertainties that surround them 💭 Our Head of Environmental Policy & Economics Chris Sherrington commented: “In the run up to INC-5, any claims by proponents of plastic credits about the role they might play in treaty implementation deserve careful scrutiny. 🔎 "Waste management has to function as a system. It needs costs to be covered (net of material revenues), a clear view as to how the system can grow and improve performance over time, and co-ordination in terms of the strategic development of facilities 🏭 "To attract investment, there needs to be a reliable counterparty. EPR schemes based on cost recovery can meet all of these requirements, credit schemes do not." 👊 Download the full report to find out more 👇 #plasticcredits #INC5 #plastictreaty #recycling #circulareconomy #EPR

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#COP16 | Earlier this week at the ‘Momentum for Target 16’ side event in #Cali, our colleague Jonathan Green, Senior Research Fellow at SEI — Stockholm Environment Institute, discussed the importance of reducing global overconsumption which is driving #biodiversity loss. 📈 Alongside other experts, he discussed how wealthy countries need to recognise their offshored environmental impacts, and adopt consumption-based metrics to assess their footprint, make informed policies and set action plans. 📊The GEIC Indicator, developed by Trase and our partners (JNCC, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, GCRF Trade, Development and the Environment Hub (TRADE Hub) and SEI) provides essential insights for integrating #environmental footprints into these policies. 🔎Jonathan said: “We need to address our  footprint on #nature to achieve Target 16. The GEIC indicator helps make the global impact of consumption visible. Without using such indicators, we cannot measure progress effectively. If we don’t measure, we don’t manage.” #CBDCOP16 #GBF #Target16 #PeaceWithNature #PazConLaNaturaleza Camila Cosse Braslavsky, Consumers International Matthew Bell, EY Nina Elomaa, S-ryhmä / S Group Shruthi Kottillil, Global Youth Biodiversity Network Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT

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“It is not how you spend money, but how you make it” André Hoffmann writes in his newly released book: The New Nature of Business - the path to prosperity and sustainability. I am reminded of this as I take the train back from visiting the cooperative Rabobank in The Hague, from which Primal Soles has not only received backing through their Innovation Impact Fund but also an invite to share our story on stage during one of Europe’s largest impact events: ImpactCity on November 7th. Circularity is a business model. Sustainability or “eco-friendly” alone is not circular per definition. Circularity in many cases also means building with the end of lifecycle in mind, taking responsibility for what you create, and finding value in its reuse. Circularity is one of nature’s most simplistic laws. Yet humans seem to still have a difficult time adjusting from a linear mindset to a circular one. It requires change after all. And change is unpleasant. It forces you out of your comfort zone and into the unknown. Circularity is natural: water evaporates from the oceans into the skies. Clouds rain down the water into rivers that in turn return the cycle back into the ocean. There is no end. Perhaps that’s what circularity is: no end. It means living in harmony with the natural environment, only taking what can be given back, in balance with the cyclical and regenerative cycles nature depends on. But starting a business is risky. Forget the financial risks and opportunity costs of one’s time invested, the biggest risk is having to take yourself out of what’s expected of you by society - by our peers, parents, teachers, bosses and politicians - and into the deep unknown. It’s mental. It’s f*cking scary and there is absolutely no structure, manual or guarantee for success whatsoever. But it is only here, in the deep unknown, that we can even begin to fathom how to invent and innovate something that benefits both people and planet. And sometimes, miraculously, it works. That’s why it’s only logical that it’s entrepreneurs, such as the creative minds in Amsterdam Circular, by Guy Vincent and Harald Friedl, as well as the GO!-NH accelerator and the Dutch Slush delegation, that will spearhead the immediate systematic implementation of circularity. Governments provide vague 2050 timelines far outliving their 4-year terms, and even business put pen to paper for 2030 or 2040 net zero targets. Targets that some inject into their DNA, some are born with, and most will only pay lip service to. But at least we’re on the same page. In theory. If anything became ever more clear from the past few refreshing weeks of events it would be that the wave that is circularity is only growing. And not all that far in the distance. Those who enter the water with the right board and slowly start pedaling towards the forming waves will be the ones that will be looked at as examples as they ride those newly formed waves with courage, determination and confidence 🏄‍♂️🤙

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Want the latest update on climate science? Listen to this brilliant podcast with Stefan Rahmstorf from PIK - Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The facts might not be news for climate enthusiasts, but they are sobering. *Did you know that excess rainfall, often caused by warmer air, is a result of the air holding more water vapor at higher temperatures? The relationship between temperature and water vapor was described back in 1834 in the Clausius Clapeyron law. It's not a linear progression; at 1C warming, the air can hold 7% more water vapor, increasing further with each degree. Brace for wetter times ahead, especially up North! *The current geological period, "the holocene," is an exceptionally long interglacial due to a unique orbital configuration. Humanity could enjoy a stable climate for tens of thousands of years if we don't disrupt it - but we are. The irony and tragedy of this situation are evident. Listen, learn, and take action! #phaseoutfossilfuelsnow https://lnkd.in/dHR9HSKu

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💡 Event Summary: 🌎💰Last week's event discussed the idea of a carbon currency as a climate mitigation tool, approaching the topic from all angles. This sparked a lot of interest, as shown by various audience questions and intense discussions afterwards. To help you navigate this complex and new topic, we've summarised the main discussion points - swipe right to find out 👉 Thanks to Evi Marler for summarising at the event for us. Main Takeaways: ► Carbon as Currency: The concept of carbon as a currency is explored, focussing on its potential to drive climate action and incentivise emissions reduction. 💬 "Carbon is the currency of life, but carbon as currency itself is a relatively new idea." - Vera Hauser ► Global Carbon Award Initiative: Dr Delton Chen introduced his initiative, sharing his comprehensive plan on how to save the planet, in seven minutes. In this high-level initiative carbon currency is used as a tool to fund energy asset exchanges. ► Tocos, A Carbon-Based Currency: Toco is a carbon-based currency, designed to democratize climate action and fix the economic model. Its aim is to expand the carbon markets and prove to central banks in this world that carbon reduction can become a revenue stream in and of itself. ► Challenges and Opportunities: The main challenges faced by carbon currencies are people's lack of awareness of them, and the bad name they have developed over the past, trust in them is low. An opportunity to solve this is to see carbon markets as a mitigation method, which can then be transferred into carbon offsetting. ► Potential of Carbon Currencies: Carbon currencies have the potential to scale climate finance, mitigate emissions, and drive market adaptation. ► Trust and Transparency: Building trust and transparency in carbon markets is essential for their success, this requires independent oversight and clear communication on where the mitigation takes place. ► Central Banks and Carbon Mitigation: The role of central banks in adopting carbon currencies and integrating them into monetary policies is crucial for the success of this market. 📚 Reading tip do delve deeper into the topic: "The Ministry for the Future" by Kim Stanley Robinson: https://lnkd.in/dAQqga8v #zurich #sustainability #carboncoin Carbon is money | Michael Eder | Paul Rowett | Johannes Pokorny | Chris Thomas | Alicia Hall

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The Burning Questions for the Circular Carbon Economy By Yip Thy Diep Ta, CEO & Founder, J3D.AI (Jedi).AI Labs, #Germany, for #HorasisInsights. ✅ The Circular Carbon Economy (#CCE) is rapidly emerging as a defining framework in the global fight against climate change, offering a comprehensive approach to reducing carbon emissions, promoting sustainability, and reshaping industries. At the Horasis Asia Meeting, leaders from business, government, and academia gathered to explore the intricacies of CCE and discuss how it can be effectively implemented, particularly in the Gulf States and Asia. This article delves into the key insights shared during the session, highlighting the potential of CCE to revolutionize industries, balance economic growth, and address urgent climate imperatives. ✅ The Circular Carbon Economy is setting the stage for a new era of business, governance, and sustainability. By rethinking the role of carbon and embracing circular principles, businesses and governments can unlock unprecedented opportunities for growth, innovation, and environmental stewardship. With continued collaboration and investment, CCE can reshape the trajectory of global growth and provide a blueprint for a sustainable, resilient future. ➡️ Full article here: https://lnkd.in/ekXnJidM https://lnkd.in/ekXnJidM

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📢Climate Adaptation session at Impact Europe's Business of Impact + Capital Ideas on 13 June🌎 Stephan Peters from ICFA, Antoine Pugliese (WWF-France) and David Ferreira (Latimpacto) together with moderator Cindy Helfer Berget (Dalberg Advisors) will explore the intertwined nature of environmental and social challenges in areas such as health, agriculture, and migration. Panellists will then share their experience on innovative strategies for promoting climate adaptation and building more resilient communities, delving into 3 topics: 💡 Current Solutions and Challenges to build #climate #resilience 🔦 Policy and Regulation to guide and support effective #adaptation measures across sectors like infrastructure, agriculture, and water management 🔆 Future Trends and Opportunities for climate adaptation #impact #investing #climate #adaptation

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🌍 Can biodiversity credits drive global restoration efforts? The creation of the International Advisory Panel on Biodiversity Credits (IAPB) is a major milestone, expanding perspectives and mobilizing a broad coalition of countries beyond the initial Franco-British framework. The recent #COP16 in Cali demonstrated the growing global interest in this collective effort. The framework established by the IAPB brings crucial international recognition. It defines what a high-quality biodiversity credit should look like. It builds on efforts and contributions from many stakeholders including World Economic Forum and Biodiversity Credit Alliance. It is however only a first step. We now need to address the challenge of market structuring. The demand side is key: the involvement of large companies is essential. I am also convinced that, by often treating carbon and biodiversity credits separately, we are missing an opportunity to promote a « nature credit » model that combines both, as companies are only beginning to grapple with the complexities of carbon credits. The example of the Green Bonds Principles, which have successfully structured a market, offers a compelling model for the next phase of the IAPB's work. #BiodiversityCredits #GreenTransition #SustainableFinance #GreenInnovation #ClimateGoals Sylvie Goulard Dame Amelia Fawcett DBE, CVO David Vaillant Read the #IAPB framework 👉🏼 https://lnkd.in/e_Wky7xf

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The road to net zero will be rocky: are sustainable finance metrics up for the journey? A new working paper, "Shocking Financed Emissions," by me and Tonya Lee for Sabin Center for Climate Change Law and Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment investigates the impact of economic volatility on those metrics. A blog snapshot and the paper can be found here: https://lnkd.in/gWwDRD2Z

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What’s next for the #EUDR after today's vote in the European Parliament? The #EuropeanParliament approved the #EuropeanCommission’s proposal to delay the EUDR by 12 months, but crucially also adopted other amendments to the legislation. That means the Commission, #EuropeanCouncil and Parliament now need to negotiate the amended legislative file via trilogues. From a legislative perspective, the amendments have not been finalised and the original text (and 2024 deadline) still stands for now. We're still waiting for the dust to settle after the Parliament’s vote today, but based on what we've seen so far, the small set of amendments and the agreement to a one-year delay (rather than longer) means that the amendments now on the table are likely palatable to all three institutions. That said, there is still the possibility that one or other of the institutions will want to open up some of the points for deeper or further discussion when trilogues begin. So: ✅ Companies can have a fair degree of confidence now to move forward on the basis that there will be a one-year delay. It seems likely that the one year delay will eventually be adopted. ✅ The greater risk is that the delay is not implemented in time to allow for publication in the EU Official Journal before December 30, 2024. Amongst the other amendments approved by the Parliament is a new risk category for countries posing "no risk" on deforestation. Companies may want to start to factor this into their planning, but should wait until a final legislative decision before relying on the new category. You can read more about our on the EUDR here: https://lnkd.in/eD9Xs5kP #EMEASustainabilityRegulationHub #EUDR #EUGreenDeal Ruth Kilsby | Ramon Bravo | Laura MacKay

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