Can business match the boldness of COP21?

This article originally was published in theBSR Insight.

When it comes to being bold, nothing tops theParis Agreement. In December, 196 countries committed to a global climate change framework that is unprecedented in its level of ambition and participation, defining in its implications for the global economy and development pathways and immediate in its implications for government policy and business practices across the globe.

该协议代表着无与伦比的集会呼声business to address global climate changeand also a substantial opportunity to build companies that are both competitive and resilient in a low-carbon world.

The Paris Agreement, despite its many strengths, does not solve climate change as a material risk for business and society.

Companies are seizing themarket opportunityof the Paris Agreement with a growing volume of commitments to climate action. More than 400 companies with total revenue in excess of $8 trillion and nearly 200 investors with assets under management above $20 trillion collectively have made1,000 commitmentsthroughWe Mean Businessto reduce greenhouse gas emissions through carbon pricing, science-based climate targets, increasing their share of renewable energy and ending deforestation.

These companies are already thinking big in setting bold targets, so how can they take climate ambition to the next level?

Increasingly, being bold means demonstrating the confidence and courage to implement commitments — and not just set targets. If the past two years were about leadership, the next two need to be about demonstrating tangible success. This will create the internal support to progressively raise ambition over time, deepen the business case for action across sectors, harvest replicable lessons from first movers, spur innovation in low-carbon technology, and provide governments with the impetus to create appropriate regulatory environments that catalyze business action.

Being bold also means deepening the partnership between the private sector and government.

Many companies committing to climate leadership are finding their efforts stalled by the policy environments in which they operate. For example, thecompany committing to procure 100 percent of its energy from renewable sourcesmight be impeded by the presence of a monopoly utility that only will provide fossil fuel or by zoning regulations that prohibit the installation of onsite renewable sources. Shaping the policy environments in which we operate is often uncomfortable for the private sector, but it is becoming a necessary condition for success.

Shaping the policy environments in which we operate is often uncomfortable for the private sector, but it is becoming a necessary condition for success.

大胆也意味着要超越传统的气候和能源政策，思考成功的破坏性，非气候思想。例如，降低资本成本对于技术开发和部署至关重要。解决腐败和法治问题对于在新兴经济体中创造业务景观至关重要，这些经济体将吸引内向投资并推动低碳发展。增加的研发支出将使突破性技术增强效率并大大减少温室气体排放。

大胆也意味着了解巴黎协议尽管有许多优势，但并不能解决气候变化作为商业和社会的重大风险。因此，公司需要对气候风险建立三维理解，这种了解超出了极端天气事件的影响，并全面考虑了一系列业务风险类别的更深层次的脆弱性。

For example,women are disproportionately affected by climate changenot because they are exposed to more extreme weather events than men, but because social, cultural, economic and political conditions undermine their ability to adapt in a changing climate. Companies who depend on women for their workforce and consumer base need to do more to understand this differentiated risk and respond with appropriate strategies to build resilience.

The"Bold Climate Action"track at our annual BSR Conference 2016 is intended to help us implement climate commitments and to look beyond the horizon at what the next generation of climate ambition and business success looks like.