Climate Summit EMEA 2023

With increased stakeholder pressures and reporting frameworks such as the TCFD now mandatory, it is essential for businesses to set net zero targets and disclose accurate and transparent information about their transition strategies. Whilst moral arguments are clear, these plans also need to provide financial benefits to get shareholders on-board. Join this panel discussion to hear from sustainability leaders on how they are championing, and implementing, transition strategies throughout their, and others, organisations.

In this session you will learn about:

• How businesses can build trust and credibility inside and outside their organisation
• The importance of monitoring and reporting in a transparent manner
• The opportunities and challenges associated with implementing a comprehensive action plan
• Best practices and lessons learned
• Disclosure frameworks and their effects on businesses

Buildings account for approximately 40% of worldwide carbon emissions, with 29% released in operation and 11% embodied in their construction. There is an urgent need to harness energy efficient technologies and materials to ensure a sustainable future for all industries. But questions remain, such as how feasible are truly net zero buildings, and the challenges with acquiring funding (in 2021, SMEs made up 99% of the UK private sector, but can these organisations afford to retrofit their buildings?), and regulatory issues to consider.

Join experts from construction consultancies, and building associations to hear about:

• The challenges surrounding retrofitting existing buildings and the associated costs
• Case studies from those actively involved in transforming buildings for a net zero future
• The actual feasibility of net zero buildings, and how we can get there
• Updates from the regulatory side

Corporate failures to price ecosystem services into business planning is aggravated by the interaction of climate change and biodiversity decline, creating compound risks for firms. Considering the $44 trillion in economic value generation (as estimated by the World Economic Forum) at risk through the dependence of business on nature and related services, investors and other stakeholders are demanding organisations make nature-related disclosures that can be utilised for investment decision making. Nature-related disclosures are already incorporated in the EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, and traction in Europe and around the world is likely to increase following the release of the Taskforce for Nature-related Disclosures' finalised framework in September.

During this session you will learn:

• What making TNFD-aligned disclosures will entail
• The importance of considering biodiversity, climate change, and risk holistically
• The inherent difficulties in trying to value nature
• How early movers have been approaching biodiversity data and environmental impact measurement

2023 has been a year of unexpected turbulence for the voluntary carbon credit market. Leading standard setters have come under fire, raising questions about the validity of offset projects and carbon credits as a whole. Yet investment continues to flow into the carbon markets, and the launch of The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) has set the stage for a new paradigm for carbon offsetting. Join this discussion session to hear from those actively involved in the carbon market on:

• When and how the market is best placed to help businesses reach emission targets
• The issues surrounding credit validity
• What firms are doing to tackle these doubts

With major regulations coming into play in 2024, organizations are under increasing pressure to collect, manage and report high quality carbon data in a timely manner. Digital transformation is required to streamline & automate data collection and to monitor and analyse emissions in real-time. Improving carbon data quality is already at the top of digital priorities for new investments, according to the 2023 Verdantix Net Zero global corporate survey. But how do sustainability professionals actually incorporate these digital tools into their organisation's strategy to ensure efficiency?

In this session, panellists will discuss:

• Practical examples of utilizing technology within decarbonization strategies
• How to mitigate common data collection and quality challenges when fulfilling carbon emissions reporting requirements
• How to tackle the limitations of carbon management digital solutions

Financial institutions play a critical role in leading the global climate transition. Quantifying and managing financed emissions is critical in allowing institutions to manage regulated disclosures, appease stakeholders, and reduce their own climate impact. Concurrently, a wave of methodological standards – notably the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials – have emerged to support financial institutions on this journey.

Join this session to hear about:

• How can new standards be implemented in practise
• The importance of transparent reporting