Business giants call for science-based green economic recovery

(EurActiv, 19 May 2020) More than 150 business giants, including Carlsberg, H&M and Pernod Ricard, with a combined market capitalisation of more than $2.4trn, have signed a joint statement calling on all governments to align coronavirus economic responses to climate science. EURACTIV’s media partner edie.net reports.

Convened through the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), 155 companies representing more than five million employees globally have signed a statement urging governments to focus on a green recovery by aligning Covid-19 economic responses with the latest climate science.

The companies, which also include Coca-Cola European Partners, JLL and Sky, are calling for policies that will build resilience against future climate shocks and risks by supporting the ambitions of the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to within 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. This, in turn, would support a global transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 – the date of the UK and EU’s net-zero targets.

The companies are calling on governments to match corporate ambitions, specifically those that have committed to 1.5C science-based targets. The companies believe that this will deliver a “faster and fairer” recovery to a green economy. The businesses are divesting from fossil fuels and shifting spending to low-carbon solutions and creating green jobs.

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EurActiv, 19 May 2020: Business giants call for science-based green economic recovery