CLIMATEWORK MAINE’s Post

As corporate sustainability moves from targets and plans to action and outcomes, companies are being called on to align their political influence with the goals of the Paris Agreement.   Engaging in climate advocacy not only allows businesses to strengthen their position on climate, but is also key to preventing the financial, physical, and systemic risks posed by a delayed economy-wide transition to net zero.   Join us in two weeks for a webinar on ‘Developing an Advocacy Strategy’, as we kick off our four-part ‘Engaging in Corporate Climate Advocacy’ webinar series, kindly supported by Clyde & Co.   Find out more and register here: https://bit.ly/4bfl91W   #ClimateAdvocacy #Policy #ClimateAction

"It's a positive reinforcing mechanism because it's compelling climate leaders to think carefully about how the work is carried out and communicated. As federal and local governments think about the staying power of this work, it's worth taking lessons from biomimicry for answers on how we should get sustainability to stick. The point: mirror nature to protect it. By improving verbal, visual, and structural flexibility—as nature so deftly does—we might be able to get climate and sustainability to stick around and stay through the next administration locally and federally." My latest for Newsweek https://lnkd.in/e3qU_uVv New York University NYU SPS Center for Global Affairs

Featured in TerraGreen - TERI - The Energy and Resources Institute's flagship digital magazine in conversation on the Contribution of Skilled Leadership Towards Addressing Sustainable Development and Climate Justice.    Environmental degradation has long-term, irreversible impacts, which includes the sub-set “Climate” – and the problem in Climate is a Tragedy of Horizons as Mark Carney calls it in his book Value(s). To resolve this paradox (tragedy) of horizons, politicians, policymakers and regulators need to look at the problem beyond their lifetime and surely beyond elected terms in government and focus on inter-generational equity. The private sector also must internalize negative externalities caused by industries through carbon pricing – external and internal. Finally, environmental governance can be improved through developing appropriate environmental standards and implementing the defined standards.    Read more here: https://shorturl.at/stN89 #Sustainability #ClimateJustice #EnvironmentalGovernance

NEW CONTENT ALERT! This slide deck prepared in collaboration with Anthony Kinslow II, PhD, CEM is now available on our website. Although learning the technical aspects of decarbonizing our built environment is critical, ensuring that decarbonization is equitable and just for all people is just as important. This deck explores the concepts of environmental racism, fence-line communities, inequities in climate disaster response, energy burden, and more. It also presents emerging solutions to these issues including policy changes, and equitable decarbonization initiatives. https://lnkd.in/gvGTdJQ6

a first step to teaching students about the hard realities of many Americans and some of the solutions that are being put forth to address the disparities that exist so that we can accelerate our clean energy transformation.

Lots of interesting findings in this article on how companies are backing away from green target setting. I was caught by this sentence early on: "Most have justified the failure to keep up the effort with a common complaint: political and regulatory factors outside companies’ control are slowing progress." Yet another addition to the drumbeat of how important it is for companies to have a clear, right-sized strategy to align their advocacy efforts with their climate goals. It's probably true that some political issues are outside of a single company's control, but there remains a lot of untapped power for positive influence. Ensuring that there is a regulatory and investment incentive environment in place is critical, but too many companies are yet to realize the importance of this strategy. #climateaction #advocacy #climate #policy #CSR https://lnkd.in/egtuaG6r

#Bookmark The July 2024 Global Environmental Journal has published Catherine Cherry + Caroline Verfuerth, PhD + Christina Demski's peer-reviewed findings that "Discourses of climate inaction undermine public support for 1.5 °C lifestyles". The 5 top #Highlights of their findings: i) We conducted unique public visioning workshops on radical low-carbon lifestyles. ii) We found strong public support for many low-carbon lifestyle strategies and futures. iii) Narratives of inaction create a public discourse of delay, undermining this support. iv) Narratives of inaction held emotional resonances that evoked defensive responses. v) Countering this public discourse of delay is essential for meaningful climate action. Three #Takeaways: i) We need to ELEVATE the Public Discourse on #ClimateAction ii) We need to constantly search-out and HONOR #ClimateAction Change-Makers...especially in the Public Discourse iii) We need to replace DarkMoney with Decency, Resilience, Transparency and Regenerative _ _ _ _ _ _ (fill in the blanks). #MoveTheMoney #CircularEconomy #YesWeCan cc: Youth4planet, ChangeNOW, EU Climate Pact Benelux, We Don't Have Time

NEW report on co-creating climate justice interventions between business and communities available for download: [https://lnkd.in/eats_-4W] Authored by BSR’s Lizzie Russler, Anine Bundgård, Melissa Do, and Eileen Gallagher, this issue brief explores the benefits and challenges of co-creation and offers guidance on how to implement potential climate justice interventions, using a process of co-creation with affected stakeholders. Climate change is one of the greatest contemporary challenges facing our society, presenting an urgent need for business transformation. As businesses navigate new challenges and opportunities, it is essential that stakeholders and communities across the value chain who are affected by climate change and climate solutions are actively involved and engaged. BSR acknowledges 7-Eleven International for their generous support with creating this issue brief. 7-Eleven International provided seed funding to BSR in 2023 to mobilize businesses toward climate justice and co-creation, ensuring that communities are at the center of solutions. #sustainablebusiness #climateaction #justtransition #bizhumanrights  

Driving the news: David Boyd, the outgoing #UN special rapporteur on human rights and the environment, criticises the global economy's dependency on exploiting resources and people, which hinders effective climate action. 🔭 The context: Boyd has emphasised the right to a healthy environment, recognised by the UN in 2021-22, as a pivotal #humanright, yet many powerful economies, including the US, have not legally adopted this. • He asserts that such rights should compel nations to enforce stricter environmental regulations. 🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Addressing #climatechange requires dismantling deeply entrenched economic systems that prioritise profit over environmental health. • This shift is essential for achieving #sustainable global #ecosystems and adhering to human rights. ⏭️ What's next: Boyd predicts an increase in #legalactions against governments and industries that fail to meet their environmental obligations, particularly those related to #fossilfuel #subsidies, which are seen as contradictory to climate commitments. 💬 One quote: "It's like there's something wrong with our brains that we can't understand just how grave this situation is," (David Boyd, #UnitedNations special rapporteur). 📈 One stat: An estimated 7 million people die prematurely each year due to #airpollution, highlighting the severe impact of environmental neglect on #publichealth.

"The climate crisis is the most pressing challenge we are facing, but a narrow focus on decarbonisation risks fast-tracking us into an even greater inequality crisis, which will slow progress. While populist narratives are increasingly pitching climate action and social justice against each other, success lies in tackling both in harmony" Giulio Ferrini, IHRB's Head of Built Environment, writes for The Developer on how 'greenlash' in the built environment can be minimised by grounding climate action in international human rights standards. Giulio draws on insights and recommendations from IHRB's research on the human rights impacts and opportunities arising from climate action in eight cities around the world - the findings from this research will be published as a single report in June. ➡ https://lnkd.in/emwPwger