Group1_A | SDG 13: Climate Action

 “Climate change is not the concern of just one or two nations. It is an issue that affects the whole of humanity and every living being on this Earth.” ~ Dalai Lama

The above quote captures the deep and far-reaching impact of climate change. The Earth saw its warmest decade between 2010 and 2019, with 2019 as the second warmest year ever recorded. With the exponential increase in Greenhouse gases, Earth’s temperature has risen by 1.15 °C as per the UN. The rising temperatures pose a direct threat to human survival in the form of extreme weather conditions that jeopardize the ecological balance, resulting in unforeseen and massive natural disasters in the form of wildfires, hurricanes, drought, floods, etc. [1][2]

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 was adopted by the UN in 2015 as a response to the extreme changes in climate. Later Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, adopting a common objective to limit the global temperature rise below 2 °C. SDG 13 covers five targets as part of climate action:










As per the Stern Review, the economic impact of climate change was estimated as 5% of the GDP each year if not tackled, whereas the mitigation costs were estimated at around 1% of GDP. Thus, making climate change mitigation an economically viable alternative. 

 

      Source: Statista

The Covid 19 pandemic has given the world the opportunity to rethink the strategy of recovery, to push the policy towards Green Investments. A sustainable recovery the plan shall depend on three main ideas:

  • Transforming the economic model to support Green Infrastructure.
  • Strong focus to address the climate crisis and restoration of nature.
  • Mitigation of inequalities and ensuring a better quality of life for all

Relevance Of The 13th SDG To India

India is ranked as one of the worst affected by extreme weather events which are brought about due to climate change. In 2018 itself, in India, such weather events led to the death of more than 2000 individuals and an economic loss of $ 37.8 billion which amounts to over 1% of India’s GDP.[3] These losses, however, do not reflect the true picture of how damaging these extreme events are some impacts that are not considered in this calculation. Since many such events adversely affect crops, reduced supply leads to increased inflation and since farmers are unable to generate revenue, they become Non-Performing Assets and it is well known how NPA’s are one of India’s worst problems. NPA’s caused by these events are not limited to the agricultural the sector, in the aftermath of the 2014 Kashmir floods, non-agricultural NPA’s shot up from 8% to 14%.[4]

India is a beneficiary of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) formed under the 13th SDG, the fund has invested $ 177.8 million in India to adapt to and mitigate the consequences of climate change. The GCF has a program to help small coastal communities to adapt and better survive the impact of climate change.[5] However, this does not address the major risk that India faces along with its 7500 square kilometre coastline. The highest risk comes from megacities like Mumbai and Kolkata, the probability that these entire cities might have to relocates is a nightmare given how critical they are even from an infrastructure point of view.

And finally, India Is home to 18% of the world’s population, addressing the 13th SDG’s targets will not only help reduce the aforementioned disasters, but will prove to be a significant force to achieve the SDG’s goals on a global level.[6]

Business Implication:

Businesses play a vital role in the achievement of SDG 13. Climate action is not only a goal by itself [7], but a means to achieve clean air and water (Goal 6), energy security (Goal 7), decent work (Goal 8), liveable cities (Goal 11) and enhanced national security (Goal 16).

Businesses facilitate greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by human beings through electricity and heat production, transport, buildings, land use, and industries. In conjunction with state & national governments, businesses need to act urgently and decisively to change GHG emissions fundamentally. They must work on their products and processes to achieve global net-zero emissions by the second half of the century.

Companies need to respond to one or more of the following themes[8]

  • GHG emissions
  • Energy efficiency
  • Risks and opportunities presented by climate change
  • Environmental investments

Businesses implications can be divided into four segments, as follows:

Implication 1: Building resilience of supply chain operations

Increased climate variability and environmental hazards are two dangers to companies' capital assets that they have to defend. They can do so by raising their supplier standards, enhancing their support (technical, financial, intellectual) to all the relevant stakeholders

Implication 2: Need to align with climate science, bringing down emissions associated with supply chain operations.

Companies need to identify and innovate to reduce:

  • direct emissions of own operations
  • indirect emissions from heat and power consumption
  • emissions from supply chain 

Implication 3: Adopt a mix of goods and services with minimal emissions.

Businesses need to optimize their portfolio that can fully replace carbon-intensive alternatives. It may involve the development of novel technology and business models.

Implication 4: Encouraging climate-conscious behaviour

Since companies play an essential role in shaping public debate, they need to raise behaviour standards through implementing climate-specific communications, education and awareness-raising strategies. 

Responses:

The businesses are indulging in decision making which aims to lower the greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate-resilient development pathways (CRDPs) are being adopted to prepare routes for achieving SDG 13 goals to limit warming to 1.5 and strengthen sustainable development.

Source: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

The organizations need to manage and align their financial and operational risks in the virtue of climate change. Some impactful measures adopted by the companies are as follows

Kearney

Kearney was the first management consulting firm to achieve carbon neutrality in 2010 and has remained carbon neutral ever since. As part of their sustainability the framework they follow 3 Es:[9]

  • Economic Development
  • Energy and Sustainability
  • Education and Workforce

Kearney Energy Transition Institute provides consulting in sustainable energy transition based on global trends and economic implications.

            Target: The company plans to switch to 100% renewable energy by 2030.

Tata Power

Tata Power, known for its commitment to sustainable development, has taken up the following measures[10]:

  • A massive shift to non-fossil fuel-based plants (3,617 W)
  • 'Tata Power Club Enerji' – An initiative which mitigated 28,000 tonnes of CO2 by reaching out to more than 533 schools across various parts in India and impacting 23.84 million citizens.
  • Responsible Supply Chain Management – Sensitizing the vendors and suppliers on environment-related sustainability 

Unilever

The company achieved its 2020 target of reducing CO2 emissions from their factories by 40% per tonne[11]. The company has started focusing on leaner, greener factories by adopting some below popular measures:

  • LEED - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design by focusing on the gold standard across all their offices
  • Low-energy LED lighting and automated lighting controls
  • Investments in clean technologies and reduction in CO2 emissions from refrigerators and freezers

NatWest Group

The group has set targets to half the climate impact of their financing activities by 2030. They committed to reducing their operations to net carbon zero by adopting the following measures[12]:

  • UNEP FI – The bank became a founding signatory of the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative's Principles for Responsible Banking
  • Climate Group's Initiatives - became the first company to commit to EV100, RE100 and EP100
  • Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) - developing tools to address climate-related financial risks

The (IPCC) has revealed that India is one of the countries most vulnerable to global warming and will face the challenge of climate change in the coming years. According to the report, agricultural economies like India will be affected by global warming, including extreme heatwaves, floods, droughts, water pressures leading to low food production.


Analysis and Way Forward:


Integrating Climate Action in Policies, Strategies, and Planning:

India strongly supports the 2015 Paris Agreement and has announced a bold national commitment to reduce the intensity of GDP emissions by 33 to 35 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030. The total capacity of non-fossil energy is about 40% and other forest covers equivalent to 2.5 bn to 3bn tons of CO2. In addition to France, India is leading the International Solar Alliance, which brings together countries that are fully or partially included between the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn. 


Clean energy:
Renewable energy installed in India increased from 38.9 million kilowatts as of March 31, 2015, to 82.58 million kilowatts as of September 30, 2019. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana has fixed its significant reliance on cooking, which to date has supplied 80.3 million gas connections worldwide.


Emission Intensity

Solar power installed in India increased nearly 12 times between March 2014 and September 2019 from 2.63 GW to 31.1 GW. The proportion of non-fossil sources in power generation capacity increased from 30.5% in March 2015 to 35.22% in September 2019. Air quality in India has been a matter of concern leading to the adoption of a multi-pronged strategy at all government levels to address this issue.


Improving Disaster Risk Reduction and Preparedness

Most of India's geography (85% of the region) is vulnerable to natural calamities, disproportionately affecting the poor. The National Disaster Risk Prevention Policy (2009) and the National Disaster Prevention Plan specifically include the Sendai Disaster Prevention Framework and millennium development goals for disaster recovery. Several programs improve the resilience towards natural disasters, including national storm risk mitigation projects, strengthening programs for state and provincial disaster management authorities, and improving disaster response capabilities. India recently launched the UN Disaster Response Infrastructure Initiative as part of a joint initiative involving 12 partner countries to strengthen global security infrastructure. [13]


Challenges [14] :


Improving Disaster Resilience: 

The diversity of disasters facing India needs a wide range of capacities and responses in disaster adaptation and disaster management. India is making progress in the right direction in terms of political intervention and empowerment. But a significant investment is needed to protect the lives of millions of people already affected by poverty and associated vulnerabilities.


Accessing Green Technologies: 

In the backdrop of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, environmentally efficient technologies increasingly gain the global community's attention due to the critical role they have in the struggle against climate change and in the achievement of the SDGs.


Meeting Energy Needs[15]: 

India points out that it is taking all necessary steps to meet the energy problems needed to boost impressive economic growth, especially if it needs to bypass coal. India's electricity needs will triple by 2030. Its coal sources will account for about 57 per cent of electricity production.


Way Forward:

  • Develop: Developing accurate systems to monitor the effects of climate change and it’s economic implications.
  • Allocate: Allocating a portion of the vast resources devoted to economic revival for building climate change resilience
  • Re-Evaluate: Re-evaluating the government subsidies that speed up climate change.
  • Collaborate: Collaborating globally to mitigate the rate of climate change and achieving sustainability. 



References:

[1]  Climate Change: Global Temperature: NOAA Climate.gov. (2020, August 14). Retrieved January 15, 2021, from https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature

[2] Climate Change and Public Health - Climate Effects on Health. (2020, August 21). Retrieved January 15, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/climateandhealth/effects/default.htm

[3] Sarkar, S. (2019, December 5). India deeply vulnerable to climate disasters. India Climate Dialogue. https://indiaclimatedialogue.net/2019/12/05/india-deeply-vulnerable-to-climate-disasters/

[4] Acclimatise News. (2019, September 3). From droughts to floods: the cost of climate change for India continues to mount | Acclimatise – Building climate resilience. AcclimatiseUK.Com. https://www.acclimatise.uk.com/2019/09/03/from-droughts-to-floods-the-cost-of-climate-change-for-india-continues-to-mount/

[5] India. (n.d.). Green Climate Fund. https://www.greenclimate.fund/countries/india

[6] Climate change, displacement, and managed retreat in coastal India - India. (2020, May 26). ReliefWeb. https://reliefweb.int/report/india/climate-change-displacement-and-managed-retreat-coastal-india

[7] SDG Blueprint | SDG 13. (2021). Retrieved 15 January 2021, from https://blueprint.unglobalcompact.org/sdgs/sdg13/
[8] SDG 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts – SDG Compass. (2021). Retrieved 15 January 2021, from https://sdgcompass.org/sdgs/sdg-13/

[9] Kearney Sustainability Report 2019

[10] Tata Power remain focused on Sustainable Development Goals during the Pandemic. Tatapower.com. (2021). Retrieved 15 January 2021, from https://www.tatapower.com/blog/Green%20Talk/tata-powers-commitment-to-sustainable-development-goals-remain-unwavering-amid-pandemic.

[11] Gases, G. (2021). Tackling climate impact in our operations. Unilever global company website. Retrieved 15 January 2021, from https://www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/reducing-environmental-impact/greenhouse-gases/tackling-climate-impact-in-our-operations/.

[12] Our approach to climate change | NatWest Group. Natwestgroup.com. (2021). Retrieved 15 January 2021, from https://www.natwestgroup.com/our-purpose/environment/our-approach-to-climate-change.html.

[13] Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2021, from https://niti.gov.in/index.php/goal-13-take-urgent-action-combat-climate-change-and-its-impacts

[14] Goal 13 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2021, from https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal13

[15] SDG 13: Climate Change. (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2021, from https://in.one.un.org/page/sustainable-development-goals/sdg-13/

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