‘The opportunity to learn, be part of a panel and present the steps we have taken as a country, industry and company to adopt new practices to nearly 40,000 participants has been invaluable’
‘The opportunity to learn, be part of a panel and present the steps we have taken as a country, industry and company to adopt new practices to nearly 40,000 participants has been invaluable’
while the annual meeting of United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP) is dominated by the presence of government delegations and climate activists, according to analysts and longtime participants of these conferences, with the participation of Indian business delegations increasing rapidly in recent years.
While the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the umbrella body under which COPs are held, maintains statistics on participation by various interest groups and their national affiliations, it does not, however, specifically engage businesses or isolate them. . Environmental Organization. Nearly 33,000 delegates have registered for COP27, making it expected to be the second largest in COP history. The size of India’s delegation, represented by government representatives, is 70.
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Mahendra Singhi, Managing Director and CEO, Dalmia Cement said. Hindu The ongoing COP had “12-15 businesses” and this was a steady increase from the previous COP. “An opportunity to learn about the steps we have taken as a country, industry and company to adopt new practices, be part of the panel and present around 40,000 participants [who attend the two weeks of the conference] Very valuable,” he said in a phone conversation from Sharm el-Sheikh. “Going forward, we are in talks with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to increase Indian participation.”
21st COP in Paris in 2015, which resulted in The Paris Agreement was a turning point Experts say this has increased participation. In the Paris Agreement all countries unilaterally accepted that the world could not be allowed to warm more than 2 degrees centigrade by the end of the century, and as far as possible, it should be limited to 1.5 degree centigrade, This made it imperative that India, which is also the third largest net emitter, a large and developing country, and still largely dependent on coal for energy, commits more substantially to a future based on renewable energy. Is. This was most clearly underlined in November 2021, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed that India would be “net zero” or carbon neutral by 2070 – a long way off but still a concrete deadline.
“Net zero is a big change but even a few years before that, government policy is clearly changing its stance from the traditional position. [of not being significantly responsible for historical CO2 levels]Like promoting solar energy. The private sector can see this very clearly, they have their money on the table. Till 2015, they felt they could ignore it, but now the global rhetoric is changing and now they see they have to adapt,” said Vaibhav Chaturvedi, who has attended several COP conferences and is a member of the public policy think tank Council Leads climate and energy policy at ForEnergy. , Environment and Water, said.
Policies in Europe, such as plans to no longer manufacture fossil fuel cars or a carbon cap adjustment tax (which would charge imported goods based on the carbon used to produce them) were indicators of a changing market and Indian exporters could influence. Domestically too, in addition to committing to produce half its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030, India also introduced a carbon market, where major polluters voluntarily agree to meet certain pollution-reduction targets. Will cut or buy carbon credits for “Many businessmen come to the COP and there are many Chief Sustainability Officers who are coming to observe, understand international business practice and understand the position of their governments. While businesses influence policy through lobbying – and this is not unique to India – there is no actual lobbying at the COP,” Dr Chaturvedi said.
“There are three groups of businessmen who visit the COP: those in the renewable energy business; Industrialists are heavily dependent on fossil fuels, such as steel and cement manufacturing; and those interested in ‘optics’, such as groups that want to appear committed not only to clean energy, but are also eyeing potential agreements with international companies to spur new technologies,” said Sambitosh Mohapatra, multiple COP He is also a participant in the Environment and Sustainability exercise at PricewaterhouseCoopers India, he said.
Even within India, domestic policy is measured by the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) mandated requirement that the top 1,000 listed companies declare initiatives taken to improve the environment and corporate governance, as a signal to other companies. work as. Familiarize yourself with international practice. “Increasingly, when I engage with corporates, I find that many of them feel that if they do not comply, or are not licensed to operate in certain countries, and their ability to raise money may be affected, their brand value and reputation may be affected.” Mohapatra said. “There is an increasing demand by senior citizens to invest only in environmentally responsible companies from banks or fund managers.”
Brajesh Singh, chairman of Arthur D Little, a consultancy, said companies as well as individual states were sending delegations to the COP. Uttar Pradesh has sent a delegation to Egypt this year to showcase its green initiatives.