Human-driven climate change is disrupting our everyday. Heatwaves mean the price of coffee has never been higher, lack of snow means ski seasons have never been shorter, and droughts mean the delay for shipments going through the Panama Canal has never been longer. 

Scientists have shown that human activities, mainly through emissions, unequivocally caused global warming. It’s already costing the world economy $16 million per hour.

If we continue with business as usual, our planet will become inhospitable. The World Health Organisation estimates an additional 250,000 climate-related deaths annually between 2030 and 2050. 

It has to stop. This is why we need to limit global warming.

It starts with the United Nations

The United Nations is taking aggressive action to curb the impacts of climate change by limiting global warming to 1.5°C. It has asked member states, including the EU, to set “Nationally Determined Contributions” (NDCs). This is also known as “The Paris Agreement”.

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was signed by over 196 parties at the UN climate change conference and came into force in 2016.

NDCs are effectively an emissions reduction target and plan to reach that target. The UN has decreed that these targets must be revisited every five years, so are likely to get more and more ambitious.  

For example, the EU has pledged to cut its net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels). In 1990, the EU emitted 4.6bn tonnes of CO2e. This means by 2030 the EU needs to cut approximately 2.53bn tonnes. Easy...

How is the EU going to meet its climate targets?

With a lot of changes. The EU has implemented several domestic policies to smoothly cut emissions by 55%. These policies include but are not limited to:

• Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS): A cap and trading scheme set up to make producing emissions more expensive, thus incentivising decarbonisation. 
• Carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM): A carbon border tax preventing “carbon leakage” i.e. transferring the producing goods or services to countries with low emission standards.
• Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD): EU law requires all large companies and all listed companies (except listed micro-enterprises) to disclose information on what they see as the risks and opportunities arising from social and environmental issues, and on the impact of their activities on people and the environment.

Why is the EU CSRD important?

Unlike CBAM or ETS, the EU CSRD does not incur direct costs for high emitters. It is simply about reporting a company's sustainability-related impacts, risks, and opportunities, setting targets, and outlining how it will address these risks.

By reporting on emissions, for example, investors, consumers, and other stakeholders can assess the climate-related financial risks and opportunities of a company. By correctly pricing risk, capital can flow into more sustainable companies. Enabling a smooth transition to a low carbon economy. 

Become an expert in EU CSRD

The EU CSRD affects companies of all shapes and sizes. Those that fall under it’s scope are struggling to acquire high quality data needed for compliance, and they’re turning to their partners for help. 

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