An increasing number of international companies are committing to Science Based Target Initiatives (SBTi) to reduce and eliminate emissions as businesses take on responsibility for their role in climate change response. Procter & Gamble, Sony, Pfizer, Dell and Tesco are just some of the well-known international businesses that have set ambitious targets through the SBTi program [1]. The diversity of these industries, ranging from leading cement manufacturers to pharmaceutical giants demonstrates the broad base of visionary corporate leaders undertaking ambitious emissions elimination for climate action.
The SBTi framework allows companies to register ambitious emissions reduction targets using a common framework and methodology. This allows targets to be shared and verified. SBTi partnered companies agree to halve emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero operations by 2050 [2]. Small and medium sized enterprises are catered to with a streamlined process to support smaller organisations lacking resources or technical expertise, overcoming entry barriers [3].
As an increasingly large number of businesses establish emissions targets, the SBTi organisation has been expanding the organisation to support its work with a key appointment in February. SBTi’s first CEO, Dr Luiz Fernando do Amaral, was appointed in 2022 to drive the exponential growth of SBTi targets globally.
“The SBTi is setting the global standard for science-based corporate target setting, filling an essential gap to unlock urgent and ambitious emissions reductions at scale” [4].
SBTi CEO, in their press release, outlined the future growth of SBTi’s global membership. Dr Amaral stressed the importance of the latest science remaining central to all decision making. He also emphasized the need for SBTis to be open for companies worldwide and highlighted the role of good governance as the organisation matures [4].
In addition to Dr Amaral’s extensive scientific credentials, his multilingual abilities will allow for direct engagement in emerging economies. SBTis inclusion and support of developing economies is critical, and echoes the sentiment of the OECD who predict emissions in developing nations to grow by 5 billion tonnes over the next two decades unless urgent action is taken [5]. According to the IPCC, not only are developing nations in need of international support to reach emissions targets, they are also most vulnerable to the worst impacts of climate change, and will face the greatest challenges to decarbonise their economies [6]. Greater adoption of Science Based Targets to reduce and eliminate emissions for small and large businesses will have positive flow on impacts for communities worldwide.
Biocare, providing specialised solutions for streamlining processes, reducing waste, and generating new income streams for heavy industry and agricultural sectors can generate valuable carbon removal credits. These carbon removal credits play an important role in the SBTi framework to offset the final 5-10% of emissions that are unable to be eliminated [7].
[1] Science Based Targets, “Case Studies,” 2022. https://sciencebasedtargets.org/companies-taking-action/case-studies/p5 (accessed Apr. 14, 2022).
[2] Science Based Targets, “SBTI Corporate Net-Zero Standard,” Oct. 2021.
[3] Science Based Targets, “Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) FAQs,” Science Based Targets, vol. 4.0. Science Based Targets, 2022.
[4] Science Based Targets, “The SBTi appoints first CEO to spearhead exponential growth in corporate climate action,” Press Release, Feb. 23, 2022. https://sciencebasedtargets.org/news/the-sbti-appoints-first-ceo-to-spearhead-exponential-growth-in-corporate-climate-action (accessed Apr. 14, 2022).
[5] OECD Development Centre and OECD Emerging Markets Network, “Green Economy and Energy Transition in Emerging Markets 2021: Setting the Climate Ambition for Emerging Markets,” EMnet Working Group on Green Economoy in Emerging Markets. 2021.
[6] J. Birkmann, E. Liwenga, and R. Pandey, “IPCC Sixth Assessment Report: Chapter 8: Poverty, Livelihoods and Sustainable Development,” in IPCC Working Group II Sixth Assessment Report, IPCC, 2022, pp. 1–106.
[7] Science Based Targets, “SBTi launches world-first net-zero corporate standard - Science Based Targets,” Oct. 27, 2021. https://sciencebasedtargets.org/news/sbti-launches-world-first-net-zero-corporate-standard (accessed Apr. 14, 2022).