BCSD Australia News
Business Council for Sustainable Development Australia
Galvanizing forward-thinking companies and organizations to accelerate the transition to a sustainable Australia.
From advancing Scope 3 transparency to navigating COP29 outcomes, this week underscores the critical role of business in driving sustainable action.?
?WBCSD’s PACT initiative takes on product-level carbon verification challenges, while COP29 outcomes highlight the private sector’s responsibility in mobilising $300 billion annually for developing nations and advancing fossil fuel transitions.?
Key developments include WBCSD’s Solar Thermal Navigator, offering renewable heating solutions for industrial decarbonisation, and insights on the Workplace Gender Equality Bill to drive inclusive business practices in Australia.?
The Protected Planet Report 2024 and OP2B’s regenerative agriculture milestones emphasise the need to scale nature-positive initiatives. Meanwhile, the push for multigenerational collaboration and knowledge transfer reinforces the value of inclusivity in innovation.?
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WBCSD initiative PACT (Partnership for Carbon Transparency) has released a new white series focused on the most pressing #Scope3 transparency and decarbonisation challenges.
The first white paper, developed in consultation with PACT members, focuses on defining a robust verification approach for product-level carbon emissions.
?? COP29, known as the ‘finance COP’, delivered key outcomes that will shape both climate action and business strategies moving forward. One of the major achievements was the pledge to mobilise $300 billion annually for developing countries by 2035, with a long-term target of $1.3 trillion per year.
?? In this new article, Jennie Dodson, Senior Director of Policy, Advocacy and Member Mobilisation at WBCSD, dives into the critical outcomes from COP29 and what they mean for business. What’s clear is that the private sector will be key to unlocking investment and accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels.
?? As we look ahead to #COP30 in Brazil, businesses will play an increasingly vital role in driving innovation and ensuring accountability. The stakes are higher than ever for the private sector to lead the way in delivering on climate goals.
OUT NOW: WBCSD’s Solar Thermal Navigator Brief ??
For industries to hit net-zero emissions targets, there needs to be a rapid uptake of renewable heating solutions. At present, around 80% of industrial process heating applications source their energy from fossil fuels ??
Solar thermal is an important part of the solutions needed for industrial heat decarbonisation, specifically for industries using heat below 400°C and with access to suitable land.
WBCSD’s Solar Thermal Navigator Brief raises awareness of solar thermal as a viable decarbonisation solution and provides a list of key considerations for companies reviewing its suitability for their operations.
?? It is the first in a series of briefs focused on technologically mature renewable heating solutions, which will support companies in assessing these options at a preliminary level.
Download the brief here ?? https://lnkd.in/eJKJwmxT
The Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Setting Gender Equality Targets) Bill 2024 is a vital step forward in ensuring fairer, more inclusive workplaces across Australia. This bill aims to drive cultural change, foster innovation in gender equity practices, and align business operations with societal expectations of fairness and inclusivity.
The proposed targets scheme requires large employers to set measurable gender equality goals every three years - helping accelerate progress toward a more equitable future. This initiative aligns with global frameworks like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 5: Gender Equality and SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth.
The Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee is now inviting submissions to inform its inquiry into this bill. Submissions close on 16 December 2024, and the report is due by 30 January 2025.
?? Steering Australia's Economic Future: A Call for Private Sector Leadership ?? Australia finds itself at a pivotal economic moment. As recent Australian Bureau of Statistics GDP figures reveal an annual growth slump to 0.8%—the weakest since the 1990s recession, barring the pandemic—Treasurer Jim Chalmers has underscored a stark reality: the private sector must lead Australia out of this stagnation.
Key Challenges:
- Public Spending Dependency: Public expenditure now accounts for record levels of GDP, yet critics argue this strategy crowds out private investment.
- Productivity Crisis: Labour productivity continues to decline, compounding inflationary pressures and delaying rate cuts.
- Structural Economic Risks: Long-term vulnerabilities, such as diminishing demand for fossil fuel exports and inadequate development of alternative industries like critical minerals, threaten GDP sustainability.
Opportunities for a Private-Sector Renaissance:
- Chalmers' rhetoric indicates a shift toward empowering business-driven growth. Business leaders have echoed this, advocating for:
- Tax Reforms: Reducing corporate taxes to encourage domestic and foreign investments.
- Streamlined Regulation: Cutting red tape to accelerate project approvals. Strategic Workforce Development: Addressing labour shortages through targeted training and immigration policies.
As part of our work with The Business Commission to Tackle Inequality (#BCTI), we're proud to launch the ‘Facilitating Knowledge Transfer Between Generations’ report. Our Equity Action team organised in partnership with the OECD Social an insightful panel with members to further discuss ways in which intergenerational collaboration drives innovation, resilience & competitiveness. ?
?? Explore the report here: https://lnkd.in/exMebuM6 ?
?? The exciting & collaborative journey that led us here: Thank you to all involved in the BCTI working group on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (#DEI). A special thanks to those involved in the work on the multigenerational workforce from the start, as part of the Business for Inclusive Growth (B4IG) initiative, which merged into our WBCSD Equity Action work at the start of 2024.
Throughout the year, we achieved various milestones including the release of OECD's report on ‘Career Paths and Engagement of Mature Workers’ (https://lnkd.in/epP6XN5w) and the organisation of two share-out sessions leading up to the newest report, focusing on Job Shadowing and?Intergenerational Monitoring.
We enabled meaningful collaboration between OECD and our BCTI member companies, reinforcing the value of knowledge sharing, gathering insights, and peer-to-peer learning on critical topics related to addressing inequality.
In December 2022, UN Biodiversity reached a historic agreement to halt and reverse the unprecedented loss of biodiversity through the adoption of the #GlobalBiodiversityFramework.
Two years on, the Protected Planet Report 2024 by UNEP-WCMC and IUCN provides the first official global evaluation of progress towards Target 3 of the Framework. While there has been progress around the world, there are gaps. To succeed in halting and reversing #BiodiversityLoss, there must be:
?? More work to scale up coverage and place protected and conserved areas where they are most needed, whilst insuring human rights, particularly for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
?? An improvement and better tracking of the quality of management, governance and #Conservation outcomes in protected and preserved arrears.
?? WBCSD's OP2B has recently published its impact report on scaling regenerative agriculture – a vital solution to reshape the way we produce food, feed and fiber.
???? With USD $3.6 billion invested, 300,000+ farmers and 3.9 million hectares of land engaged, OP2B members are scaling-up regenerative agriculture. By 2030, they aim to reach 12.5 million hectares – roughly the size of England.
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OP2B's 5-year progress report shows that change is under way and underscores the urgent need to scale these practices, which restore #SoilHealth, improve #livelihoods and builds resilience in our #FoodSystems.
Discover the report ?? https://lnkd.in/ehb8enN9
?? The health of the natural world is essential — it underpins human well-being and sustains global economies.
?? That’s where the concept of Natural Capital comes in. By recognising the true value of Earth’s (living) resources, we can make more informed, sustainable decisions.
??The capitals approach provides organisations with a powerful framework to understand their complex, interconnected relationships with nature and the critical ecosystem services it supports.
#COP29 in Baku ended with a mix of urgency and delay, progress and frustration. In her latest piece for Forbes, We Mean Business Coalition CEO María Mendiluce, highlights the key outcomes and their implications for global climate action. ?
Starting on a positive note, the $300 billion climate finance pledge, paired with a target of $1.3 trillion by 2035, signalled that the world is beginning to gather the resources needed to support meaningful climate action. ?
At last, the finance needed for meaningful climate action is starting to catch up with the scale of the crisis itself. For developing nations facing disproportionate risks from the climate crisis, this stands to make a big difference, improving access to finance so far limited by high-risk premiums and undeveloped infrastructure. ?
But alongside this limited progress came serious failure, including the absence of firm commitments to reduce fossil fuel use. Crucially, this failure to confront the damage caused by fossil fuels risks undermining the very momentum that the $1.3 trillion target seeks to create.
Now, the onus now shifts to national governments, as they prepare to transform global commitments into domestic action. Nations leaving Baku must ensure their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are not just ambitious on paper but backed by policies that de-risk investments, encourage innovation, and deliver tangible results.
?? Kicking Off COP 16: A Global Commitment to Combat Desertification and Drought ?? On 2 December 2024, the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) opened with a vibrant cultural performance and a clear call to action.
?? Highlights from Day 1:
? Leadership Transition: COP 15 President Alain-Richard Donwahi reflected on strides in innovation, financing, and community involvement, before passing the gavel to Abdulrahman Abdulmohsen AlFadley, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Environment, Water, and Agriculture.
? Saudi Arabia’s Vision: President AlFadley underscored the Saudi Green Initiative, which aims to rehabilitate 40 million hectares of degraded land by 2030, as a cornerstone of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to combat land degradation and drought.
? Global Cooperation: UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed and UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw urged prioritization of international partnerships, financial investment, and robust action on land restoration and drought resilience.
?? Innovation and Investments Announced: The Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership, supported by USD 150 million, will promote drought-resistant crops, knowledge sharing, and smallholder support. Mongolia’s Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai welcomed delegates to COP 17 in 2026, marking the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists.
??? Work Underway: The Committee of the Whole (COW) established contact groups to discuss budgets and drought policy. The Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought presented seven policy options, sparking debates over legally binding protocols versus voluntary measures.
?? Australia’s Role ??
As a leader in drought resilience, Australia is uniquely positioned to contribute expertise in advanced water conservation technologies, drought-resistant agriculture, and integrated land management strategies, especially in the Asia-Pacific region.
?? A Call to Action The High-Level Ministerial Dialogue reinforced the need for proactive and inclusive approaches to drought, with innovative policies and partnerships leading the charge. Together, let’s make COP 16 a turning point in our shared journey to safeguard our planet’s land and resources. ??
During Agri-food System Day at COP16Riyadh, WBCSD celebrates two major achievements of the COP28 Action Agenda on Regenerative Landscapes:
1 ) The publication of the first progress report a year since the inception of this private sector-led initiative, and 2 ) the launch of the Landscape Accelerator – Brazil.
?? Through the Action Agenda's Global Data Platform, in 2024 collective investments in regenerative landscapes were gathered amounting to over $6 billion (nearly a 3x increase since last year), covering 300+ projects and over 280M hectares (by 2030), a 75% increase compared to 2023.
?? Through the Landscape Accelerator, Brazil aims to unlock the transition of large agricultural landscapes, starting in the Brazilian Cerrado. This involves aligning public and private actors on 1) a collective transition plan backed by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, 2) identifying the policies and investments needed, and 3) producing guidance on context-specific metrics underpinning cost-effective MRV.
Read all about our achievements here: https://lnkd.in/ejnJxQff
The Global Reporting Initiative welcomes that the Australian Parliament has approved a law setting some of the most stringent #taxtransparency rules in the world – requiring large companies to publicly disclose country-by-country reporting on tax (#CbCr) ??
The new rules explicitly require consistency with the disclosures in #GRI207, the global best practice for organisation’s to report their #tax practices and contributions, in the markets & communities where they operate ???????????We strongly encourage other regulators to mandate GRI 207 in tax transparency policies.
Given a quarter of the largest businesses worldwide use our Tax Standard, and 72% of major companies in Australia are GRI reporters, the move reinforces the position of GRI 207 and our standards as the blueprint for companies to deliver measurable impact ??
As global temperatures rise and climate-related risks grow, the need for businesses to adapt and transform has never been more pressing. Transition plans are the blueprint for navigating this change - helping companies thrive in the shift to a net-zero economy while addressing the interconnected challenges of climate, nature, and society.
Through 2024, WBCSD has convened a Transition Planning working group, focusing on identifying our members’ challenges and steps to shape and implement strong transition plans.
Insights from the working group and from discussions with our members at our recent Council Meeting in New York City highlighted five key areas to 'unlock' the successful implementation of transition plans, which we will explore in our article series:?
1 Business Transformation: Embedding change through familiar corporate management frameworks.
2 Policy Engagement: Identifying and advocating for the policy conditions necessary for success.
3 Finance & Risk: Aligning capital, investments, and risk strategies with net-zero goals.
4 Value Chain: Leveraging data and collaboration to drive decarbonisation across supply chains.
5 Organisational Capacity: Upskilling teams, enhancing governance, and aligning incentives.
Last week CDP attended INC-5, the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee. This critical UN Environment Programme negotiation focused on developing a legally-binding international instrument to combat plastic pollution – one of the most urgent environmental crises we are facing. Unfortunately, an agreement was not reached.
INC-5 was a reminder of several key facts:
?? An ambitious, legally-binding treaty has enormous potential to propel the private sector towards meaningful accountability and change.
?? A bold and ambitious treaty on plastics is no longer just a call from civil society—it’s a growing demand from the market.
?? Despite awareness of the regulatory, reputational and physical risks, too few companies are acting on changing their reliance on plastics across their value chains.
Collaboration and transparency remain key to driving meaningful action that will stem the growing tide of plastics pollution. Irrespective of the outcomes of the treaty, we encourage companies to take a critical step by disclosing data on their plastics impacts.