Beyond PR: How sustainability became serious business

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How to Implement and Profit from Unexpected Solutions. Large corporations and their investors care about ESG metrics also because of material risks. For instance, when a soda company uses large volumes of water, it can lead to a water shortage and affect future business operations, besides opening the door for litigation and penalties.

“In the venture capital space, sustainability is viewed as a route to innovative products. Air Company (New York-headquartered), which makes carbon-negative vodka and sustainable aviation fuel by drawing carbon dioxide from air, is an example," Bhatnagar added. By 2030, the world needs to cut emissions by 28% to limit temperature rise to 2% above pre-industrial levels, or reduce emissions by 42% for the 1.5°C goal, as per the Paris Agreement signed in 2015, the latest Emission Gap Report by the United Nations said last month.

Crossing the temperature threshold means more severe climate disasters, including droughts, heatwaves, and excess rainfall. The ongoing COP28 (UN’s climate change conference) is about turning things around but national governments cannot do it alone, Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general said a few days back. “Businesses, financial institutions, civil society, cities, states and regions are all critical in the race to net-zero." Besides, the cost of inaction is high.

For instance, according to the CDP India Disclosure report 2022, of the 122 companies which responded to a survey, 104 confirmed climate-related risk and opportunities in at least one of their key business areas. The financial impact reported by these companies from climate-related risks was estimated at ₹2.8 trillion. CDP is a charity that runs a global disclosure system for investors, companies and