Since September 2020, China pledged to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060Double carbonHot. And then led to China'sesgHot as wellSustainabilityattention.
What is the relationship between carbon neutrality, ESG and sustainable development?Today, let's sort out the source of these three concepts.
The authorities on carbon neutrality are the IPCC and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
In 1896, Swedish scientist Svante Ahrrenius believed that carbon dioxide emissions could contribute to global warming, but it was not widely accepted. It was not until the 70s of the 20th century that scientists gradually recognized the impact of carbon dioxide on the Earth's atmosphere. In the 80s, a series of meetings focused on climate change began.
In 1988, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).The Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change was establishedipcc：intergovernmental panel on climate change ）。
In 1990, the IPCC published its first assessment report, which identified the scientific basis for climate change and had far-reaching implications for policymakers and the public at large, calling for a framework convention on climate change.
Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 May 1992United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeIt was opened for signature during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 1992 with the participation of world leaders. The Convention entered into force on March 21, 1994, and since 1995, the Parties have convened annual Conferences of the Parties (COP) to assess progress in addressing climate change. The 26th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) in 2020 was postponed to 21, and 28 meetings have been held so far. COP28 has just concluded in the UAE.
Among them, at the Conference of the Parties held in Paris in 2015, the Paris Agreement was signed, with the goal of:Limit the increase in global average temperature to well below pre-industrial levels2 and strive to limit temperature rise above pre-industrial levels15 while recognizing that this will significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change；To do this, Parties need to set national carbon reduction targets and contribute to global reductions in CO2 emissions to meet climate goals.
At COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, Parties committed to carbon reduction targets, including carbon neutralityIt refers to the total amount of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gas emissions directly or indirectly produced by a country, enterprise, product, activity or individual within a certain period of time, through afforestation, energy conservation and emission reduction, etc., to offset the carbon dioxide or greenhouse gas emissions generated by itself, to achieve positive and negative offsets, and to achieve relatively "zero emissions".
The authority on sustainable development is the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
The term sustainable development first appeared in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Outline for the Conservation of Natural Resources in 1980: ".The fundamental relationships between nature, society, ecology and economy and the use of natural resources must be studied in order to ensure sustainable global development.
In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development published the report "Our Common Future", which defined sustainable development as: ".Development that meets the needs of the present without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Early sustainable development was mainly in the field of the environment, including biodiversity, climate change and other fields.
Now when we talk about sustainable development, we mainly refer to:United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).。On September 25, 2015, the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit was held at the headquarters in New York, and the 193 member states of the United Nations officially adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the summit. The SDGs aim to address them in an integrated manner between 2015 and 2030Social, economic and environmentalThe three-dimensional development issue shifts to the path of sustainable development.
Among them,Carbon neutrality goalsIt is to achieve the firstSustainable Development GoalsClimate actionCarbon neutrality is a goal set by reducing greenhouse gas emissions among the environmental factors in the Sustainable Development Goals
Therefore, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are UN goals, and they are achieved by driving the goals
ESG is organized by the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment
The United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) was spearheaded by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2006 to help investors understand the impact of environmental, social and corporate governance factors on investment value, and to support signatories in integrating these elements into investment strategies, decision-making and active ownership. After the release of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2006, the concept of ESG was bornIn the 2008 financial crisis and the recent global crisis of the new crown epidemic, companies with high ESG ratings performed far better than other companies in both crises, and the scale of ESG assets showed rapid expansion, with more than $120 billion of funds pouring into sustainable investment in 2021.
ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance, which is an acronym of Environmental, Social and Governance, which evaluates the sustainability of corporate operations and the impact on social values from the three dimensions of environmental, social and corporate governance.
The ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) concept corresponds to the three dimensions of sustainable development: social, economic and environmental. ESG is mainly from the perspective of investment evaluation to promote enterprises to help achieve sustainable development goals.
Therefore, ESG influences the attention of capital to enterprises in the form of ESG ratings through the disclosure of corporate ESG information, so as to promote the realization of sustainable development goals of enterprises.
Many ** exchanges require companies to disclose ESG information.