Abstract
Business leadership will be fundamental in the transition to a zero-carbon global economy. Companies will play a key role in producing low-carbon products, financing emission-reducing projects, and implementing government climate plans. Due to their importance, and contribution to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, businesses are facing increasing pressure from various groups – including investors, customers, and employees – to set climate targets backed by detailed implementation plans. In response, an increasing number of large companies are setting long-term goals to reduce GHG emissions, especially “net-zero” or “carbon neutrality” commitments for the year 2050 or sooner. The details of the targets and corresponding execution plans vary but are generally more ambitious than previous corporate commitments. This chapter discusses why and how companies are setting these new goals, the key components of the targets, and the implementation strategies businesses are utilizing, including renewable energy procurement, investing in carbon removal measures, and policy advocacy.
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Erb, T., Perciasepe, B., Radulovic, V., Niland, M. (2022). Corporate Climate Commitments: The Trend Towards Net Zero. In: Lackner, M., Sajjadi, B., Chen, WY. (eds) Handbook of Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-72579-2_146
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