Compensate x Positive: Empowering Net Zero and Beyond before 2030

Monday, November 29, 2021

Compensate is excited to partner with the Positive Impact Community - 175+ purpose-led SMEs taking sustainability to the next level by committing to reaching net zero by 2030.

Commitments falling short

The outcome of COP26 in Glasgow is that the world is on track for about 2.4C of warming if all national pledges are actually implemented according to the Climate Action Tracker . National net zero targets cover more than 80% of global GDP – and 77% of global greenhouse gases according to a new tracker co-led by Oxford Net Zero . However, even the 2.4C could be overly optimistic as an assessment of net zero targets of leading firms and countries reveals that the actual number is much lower and covers 10% of global GDP and 5% of global emissions if only robust net zero pledges are counted.

In addition, a new independent investigation by the Washington Post covering 196 country reports reveals a significant gap between the emissions countries report and the actual emissions released in the atmosphere. For instance, the reported and predicted 2019 GHGs emissions for all countries amount to 44.2 billion tons. Comparing this to the independent global emissions measurements reveals a large underreporting gap of 8.5b - 13.3b tCO2e, excluding the >1 billion tons of emissions from international air travel and shipping for which no country takes responsibility.

Businesses at the forefront of climate change mitigation

In the last couple of years businesses have taken a leading position in mitigating climate change by committing to reaching net-zero by 2050. In 2021, one in five large companies in G-20 countries have a net zero target - an upscale from 2020, when one in three companies had committed to net zero.

SMEs and midsize companies are often overlooked, yet they account for 60-70 percent of the global economy, employing 2 billion people. Positive is an impact community of 175+ SMEs with ambitions target - going net zero and beyond by 2030.

Positive x Compensate: Empowering SMEs

Compensate firmly believes that emission reductions are the primary way to solve the climate crisis and is delighted to partner with the Positive Impact Community. Together we can empower SMEs to take climate action by achieving rapid emission reductions and compensate for the unavoidable emissions with high quality carbon capture projects with demonstrated true climate impact. Also, in line with the Voluntary Carbon Market Integrity Initiative , companies are encouraged to reduce emissions according to their net-zero plan and go even further than that by purchasing additional carbon credits in recognition of the company's current and future expected unabated emissions and/or historical emissions.

The Positive Net Zero & Beyond Toolkit is a practical guidebook inspiring climate leadership and providing companies a step by step approach not only on how to identify and reduce their emissions but also how to influence change within their network.

By combining a market-disrupting sustainability approach with scalable software solutions, Compensate enables carbon capture done right, truly unlocking its climate-saving potential and enabling a larger, systemic change. As part of the Compensate commitment to full transparency, no cuts are taken from the compensation payments and 100% of the funds are used to buy carbon credits.

You can download Compensate’s white paper Reforming the Voluntary Carbon Market here – in it, you’ll discover a breakdown of the research done by Compensate, and ways in which the voluntary carbon market should be developed.

Compensate is looking forward to engaging in a dialogue with the Positive members on the current issues and reforms needed in the voluntary carbon markets.

Get a free copy of the Positive Net-Zero & Beyond Toolkit giving you practical steps to start your Net-Zero Journey here .

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