Currently underway in the Swedish capital, Stockholm+50 commemorates the 50th anniversary of the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Human Environment, held in 1972 – which made the environment a pressing global issue for the first time. Aiming to drive action towards a healthy planet for the prosperity of all, the meeting brings leaders and representatives from governments, businesses, international organisations, civil society and youth together.
Amid the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste, Stockholm+50 will act as a springboard to accelerate the implementation of the UN Decade of Action to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including the 2030 Agenda, the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, and encourage the adoption of a global agreement to end plastic pollution, while also advancing green post-COVID-19 recovery plans.
On the occasion of this historic event, we spoke to Justin Perrettson, Chair of ICC Global Environment and Energy Commission, which addresses the major global environmental issues and makes substantive contributions to key intergovernmental discussions in these areas. Justin is also Head of Sustainability Partnerships at Novozymes, a world-leading biotechnology company, which has a core focus on Sustainability.
ICC has a long history of involvement in sustainability, in particular climate action, and was in Stockholm for the first UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in 1972. And as the official Focal Point for Business and Industry at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, ICC has played a central role at international climate change negotiations since the 1990s, bringing private sector expertise and experience to the discussions. And ICC also serves as a Permanent Observer to the UN General Assembly in New York, playing a leading role in informing business and industry’s understanding of the development and deployment of the SDGs.
Most importantly, the rules agreed in Glasgow must now be implemented – in a way that works for the real economy. Engaging the private sector will be key in this regard, especially when it comes to finance. It’s also imperative that advanced economies make good on their promise to mobilize 100 billion US dollars in climate finance for the most vulnerable and further enhance on adaption finance. And revised NDCs – Nationally Determined Contributions – are also due from countries, further helping set the tone and direction for business investments.
Over the next six months, our interconnected and interdependent world will see a number of opportunities to deliver on the implementation of the global sustainability agenda, and which cannot be achieved by either government or businesses in isolation, cutting across climate, biodiversity and circular economy and trade. And we all only succeed in creating the future we want by addressing these interlinked challenges in a coordinated, concerted and holistic manner and by engaging every part of society, and through deep and genuinely meaningful platforms that engaging business in key intergovernmental discussions. ICC and the Global Environment and Energy Commission is responding to both this challenge and the opportunity by enhancing its leadership, strengthening its work and delivering for business.
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