archiveSeptember 2023

Ahead of another UN climate conference, Juan Pablo Solis, senior advisor for climate and environment, Fairtrade International urges governments for concrete action… but time is running out In the 1993 comedy film Groundhog Day, Bill Murray plays Phil Connors, a misanthropic and cynical Pennsylvania weatherman condemned to reliving February 2nd repeatedly until his ethical compass is fully corrected. The film is a comedy driven by the preposterous. But it is also a warning about the dangers of stasis – of how inaction can grind the mechanisms of life to a...

Dr Andriannah Mbandi, waste management deputy lead, United Nations high level climate champions and Engineering X initiative on open burning of waste looks at the challenges the world faces in dealing with garbage The COP27 climate summit is drawing global scrutiny of the progress made by individuals, organisations, and governments in tackling climate change, as well as the issues that they have overlooked. Despite its catastrophic impacts on health, climate and the economies of developing countries, the open burning of waste has long been neglected and has not been mentioned...

Military carbon emissions are among the highest in the world and account for up to five per cent of global emissions. Military carbon emissions of climate-disrupting greenhouse gases contribute to military carbon footprints including equipment used in exercises, patrols and fighting wars, along with management of military bases and supplies such as food and fuel. Environmental science reports estimate that the world’s combined militaries and their supporting industries produce more global emissions than civilian aviation and shipping combined. According to the US Department of Energy, since 2001 the US military has produced more than...

Ruth Murray, associate director of sustainable infrastructure at Gresham House outlines the importance of biodiversity on the journey to a net-zero future All eyes are on net zero – from governments at COP27 to corporations making pledges. Climate change poses an existential threat. But this is only one half of the equation. Nature has subsidised our growth and prosperity to its serious detriment, creating another existential threat equal to that of climate change. It is imperative that biodiversity restoration is a key element of our race to Net zero; they...

Seamus Garvey, professor of dynamics in the Faculty of Engineering at University of Nottingham argues that there is no energy crisis and there never was one. At any one time, the sun throws down over 10,000 times more energy onto the earth than we humans consume. All we need do is collect a tiny fraction of that energy and deliver it when and where it is wanted. At COP27 delegates are focussing on the topic of energy, including renewable energy (RE) and energy transformation. As the world continues its journey...

Fashion brand River Island has over 300 stores worldwide employing over 1000 staff and last year sold over £600 million worth of clothes. The company has been working to a dedicated net zero strategy since 2020 and has introduced a range of sustainable supply chain initiatives. Here, Jose Arguedas Schwank, head of corporate responsibility and sustainability at River Island details the steps the company has taken on its journey to net zero. “In 2020 we introduced 12 commitments for people and planet, which includes action on climate change as a...

After 20 years of talks UN member states have agreed a High Seas Treaty to protect 30 per cent of the world’s oceans. But it could be another decade before any real action is taken to implement the treaty. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (High Seas Treaty) sets out a range of legally-binding principles to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity, pledges more money for marine conservation and establishes new rules for mining at sea. Two thirds of the world’s oceans are...

CSRD is set to have a major impact on the way large manufacturers operate audit and report and companies have just 12 months to prepare. CSRD, the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, will require large companies to audit and disclose information on the way they operate and manage social and environmental challenges. It is an all-new legal accounting framework and the biggest change in corporate reporting for two decades. Companies could have up to 30 new standards to report on each setting out underlying guidelines, quantitative metrics and qualitative disclosure...

Mitakshi Sirsi, director of sustainability at Will+Partners explains why individual action has a crucial role to play in our quest to achieve a net-zero futureEarlier this month, it was disenchanting to see COP27 open in a luxury resort town, backed by questionable sponsors, a large increase in delegates from the fossil fuel industry, and hearing climate justice cheerleaders expressing regret over the choices made by the conference. Climate change is a personal issue to me. Having become a parent recently, I feel highly motivated to cut carbon through my work....

Nuclear fusion regulation planned by the UK government is set to accelerate the development and deployment of fusion energy technology. Nuclear fusion regulation is needed as development of this potential renewable energy source is moving at pace and it could be a major leap forward on the road to net zero. Here, environmental lawyers at Burges Salmon respond to the government’s plans. In October 2021 the Government published its Green Paper ‘Towards Fusion Energy’ in which it sought input from stakeholders on the future regulation of nuclear fusion. The focus...