Now is the time to translate net zero aspiration into action

It’s often said that fine words are meaningless unless they’re backed up by action.

Recent discussions at COP27 have once again focused the world’s attention on “keeping 1.5 alive” while also kick-starting the process of creating a new ‘loss and damage’ fund for developing nations.? The real work now continues to deliver the action that is so desperately needed.? Suzanne Sosna, our Director of Economic Opportunities and Climate, examines what we're doing to tackle the twin climate and nature emergencies.?

"The warning from Antonio Guterres, the UN’s Secretary General, that the world is not on track to reduce global warming to below 1.5 degrees should be a wake-up call to every organisation. This calls for fundamental change by all of us to urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions as well as to adapt to the inevitable impacts of climate change. After two weeks of negotiations, Guterres reminded everyone that ‘our planet is still in the emergency room’ and action must be taken now to drastically reduce emissions.??

Bold ambitions are needed?

Scottish Enterprise has big ambitions.?We want to lead, influence and create opportunities for Scotland’s just transition to net zero. While we’re fully committed to supporting Scotland’s 2045 emissions target, Scottish Enterprise’s particular focus is on the many economic opportunities brought by the transition to a net zero economy.?We’re supporting businesses and supply chains to innovate and invest in the enabling products, services and technologies – commercial opportunities that also deliver benefits to the environment and society.

In June this year we published the 2022/23 update to our Net Zero Framework for Action .? This sets out our priorities and how we’re delivering them, making sure we’re held to account in delivering our commitments.?We’re determined to embed a focus on net zero in everything we do.?

To create a more sustainable economy and society we need to change.?And this needs to be transformative change.?Switching to energy-saving light bulbs and recycling is a good start, but the reality is that this won’t get us to net zero.? We now need to concentrate more on the bigger steps that will accelerate change.

Leading and influencing change?

This is where we have a role to play.?Given our focus on net zero economic opportunities that also deliver benefits to people and planet, what does “leading and influencing” actually look like in practice??How are we translating aspiration into action?

The easiest way to answer this is to make a distinction between the transformational opportunities that will position Scotland as a net zero leader, and the actions that every single business can take to remain competitive.? Both are important.?

First, we’re prioritising a handful of very significant opportunities in which Scotland has distinctive strengths. These include the hydrogen economy, offshore wind, green heat and zero emission transport.?These are areas in which we can harness our existing world-leading commercial and research strengths to invent and innovate, creating businesses, jobs and supply chains that will drive future prosperity.?We aim to play a catalytic role in working alongside businesses, investors and partners to realise the significant scale of these global market opportunities.

Secondly, beyond these ‘big ticket’ market opportunities such as green heat and hydrogen, it’s important to recognise that adapting to net zero is a competitiveness issue for every business in Scotland.? Reducing carbon impact not only reduces cost but it helps attract customers, employees, new contracts and investment.?When prospective staff, investors or buyers are selecting which company to work for, or do business with, they’ll increasingly want to scrutinise companies’ net zero credentials.

Sustainability just makes good business sense?

At Scottish Enterprise, we’re focused on accelerating change.?We want to encourage many more companies to start and progress their net zero journeys.?That’s why, since 1 October, we’re offering funding only to companies that can already demonstrate or – with our support – are willing to adopt more sustainable business practices.?Over time, we’ll influence and support a growing number of companies to align their business plans with net zero goals, building resilience and competitiveness.???

It’s important to know that if a business doesn’t already have a credible net zero plan in place, then we can help. Our approach is about supporting and incentivising change, not putting barriers in the way.? Our team of sustainability specialists are on hand to offer expert advice, no matter where companies are on this journey. Our free diagnostic tool can also assess business sustainability levels, and identify the actions they can take to do more. Information on all of the support available can be found on our website .

In this article by one of our Sustainability Specialists, Fraser Miller busts some myths about why organisations need to wake up to change and outlines the support we can offer.???

There’s sometimes a perception that net zero imposes a burden on business; one more barrier that increases the cost of doing business during economic recession.?In fact, the opposite is the case.?Lowering emissions and waste directly reduce cost, and a visible commitment to sustainability drives business performance in a host of other ways.?

We’re seeing this in the intelligence we gather. Other than ‘funding’ and ‘grants’, the top 10 search terms on the Find Business Support (FBS) portal include ‘energy’, ‘net zero’ and ‘net zero grant’. ‘Energy’ has been the second most popular search term on FBS since late August.? A survey for the British Chamber of Commerce found that 55% of businesses identified net zero is an investment priority over the next 12 months.?

Walking the talk?

We know that our efforts mean little if we're not practising what we preach. That’s why we’re making determined efforts to embed net zero in everything we do:?

• Strategy - our net zero and fair work priorities underpin our corporate plan, helping to improve the international, innovation and investment performance of Scotland’s businesses.?Our Net Zero Framework for Action is a visible demonstration of our commitment and drives action to 2025 and beyond.
• Operations - alongside the headline actions in our Framework, each operational team is delivering a number of supporting actions.?These help them to lead and influence change across their specific functions, including place-based activities and trade and investment.
• Net zero target - in 2020/21, Scottish Enterprise was firmly on track to meet its 2040 net zero target, reducing its internal operational emissions (scopes 1, 2 and 3) by 81% from a 2015/16 baseline.?We’re also developing a methodology to account for the scope 3 emissions generated by our economic development support to businesses and projects across Scotland. This will allow us to baseline emissions and identify how we can reduce impacts over time.
• Governance - our strategic approach is guided by a cross-organisational Net Zero Steering Group as well as our two Board climate change champions.?We carry out a net zero assessment of all Scottish Enterprise projects in development, and net zero features strongly in appraisal and decision-making processes.
• Staff development - during 2022/23, another 70% of our staff will complete climate literacy training, following on from the training all our senior leaders received in 2021.? Net zero is everyone’s job.
• Measuring and driving organisational performance - we have a well-developed performance management framework that reflects our strategic objectives.?Since supporting Scotland’s transformation towards a net zero economy is at the core of what we do, our headline measures – particularly around innovation, internationalisation and investment – all incorporate net zero activities.?We also have two specific measures, tracking the emission reductions achieved as a result of our support to businesses as well as the circular economy projects we’re supporting.

While this is a good start, we are constantly striving to do better within SE and through our work with companies, partners and other organisations across Scotland, the UK and globally. We can all learn from each other and work together to deliver the net zero future we must achieve."

Find out more

Join us on our net zero journey by visiting our website to understand more about the actions your business could be taking and the support available to you along the way.