Climate Summit
EMEA

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

Financed emissions account for at least 90% of the GHG emissions of asset managers, banks, pension funds and private equity firms. Financial data providers now offer increasingly sophisticated digital solutions to help financial institutions calculate their financed emissions across different asset classes. During this session, Verdantix Senior Manager, Sarah Bloch will explain the implications for fund managers as well as for the companies they invest in as investors and lenders garner greater insight into emissions intensity and net zero metrics.

The enterprise carbon management software market is growing, driven by corporate voluntary commitments towards decarbonization and regulatory emissions reporting requirements. The landscape of carbon management software vendors is also evolving, with new and existing players developing their solutions to meet corporates' needs. Join this session, as Verdantix Industry Analyst, Alessandra Leggieri, unveils this year's Green Quadrant for Enterprise Carbon Management software and gives an overview of carbon management market trends.

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

The drumbeat of negative publicity surrounding the Voluntary Carbon Market has impacted many corporate commitments to buying carbon offsets. Especially those generated by GHG emissions ‘avoidance’ projects. By contrast, an entirely new industry focused on GHG emissions ‘removals’ has sprung into life in the last 2 years. And corporate climate neutrality budgets have followed suit with the likes of BCG, JP Morgan and Microsoft cutting sizable cheques. Hear from Verdantix Senior Analyst, Connor Taylor who will present recent Verdantix research about the switch from generic offsets to removal credits.

Whether your firm is a real estate investor, facilities management provider or occupier there are a multitude of proven technologies available in the market to reduce energy costs and reduce associated emissions. However, the convoluted nature of the real estate market often makes implementing technologies hard to achieve. Join this session, led by Verdantix Industry Analyst, Harry Wilson who will present his recent benchmark of energy management software and share a tech roadmap for the entire ecosystem of energy management technologies.

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

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. But how do these organisations actually drive down emissions across their clients and subsequently their own portfolios?

Join this session to hear about:

• How can new standards be implemented in practise
• The importance of transparent reporting
• Incentives and tactics to drive sustainable loaning

Learn how to build your ESG journey towards digital transformation, exploring the strategies and ESG initiatives you must undertake to align your operations with environmental responsibility.

In 2023, all regions of the world were negatively impacted by extreme weather events caused by anthropogenic climate change and the start of the naturally-occurring El Niño global weather pattern. The World Meteorological Organization predicted that there is a 60% chance that global temperatures will be at least 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in one year between 2023 and 2027. Join this best practices discussion with Verdantix Principal Analyst and ex-Antarctic climate researcher Dr Katelyn Johnson to have your questions answered.

• What are the key drivers and requirements underpinning sustainability and ESG trends?
• How can technology be used to achieve performance improvement?
• What does best practice sustainability management and ESG disclosure look like?

The 2023 Verdantix Net Zero global corporate survey revealed that carbon data quality is at the top of digital priorities for new investments, and with major regulations coming into play in 2024, organisations are under increasing pressure to collect, manage and report high quality carbon data in a timely manner. Whilst many companies have successful existing reporting initiatives for Scopes 1 & 2, huge challenges exist surrounding Scope 3 data collection and reporting. So how do sustainability professionals incorporate effective tools and methods into their organisation's strategy to ensure efficiency and transparency?

In this session, our panellists will discuss:

• Examples of successful reporting plans within decarbonisation strategies
• How to mitigate common data collection and quality challenges when fulfilling carbon emissions reporting requirements
• Lessons learned in establishing Scope 1 & 2 reporting strategies
• How to tackle the complexities associated with Scope 3 reporting

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
• Realigning carbon credits with climate action
• The issues surrounding credit validity
• What firms are doing to tackle these doubts