The new Net Zero Standard by the Science Based Target initiative is becoming the benchmark against which companies can assess their commitments on climate. With the bar being set even higher, and going beyond offsets, companies will need to innovate like never before.
The development of exciting new technologies, creative collaborative solutions, and sector-wide breakthroughs will drive the transition to a low carbon economy.
With this in mind, we’ve created a terminology guide focused on Net Zero, The Science Based Target’s initiative and innovation to help businesses and individuals engage in the conversation and drive positive change.
- Incremental innovation: The gradual and continual improvement of existing products or services.
- Industry-wide collaboration: Solving one of the world’s biggest problems, climate change, will require deep collaboration to drive progress on common objectives. Even though companies are often competitors, change makers are now often coming together to pool resources and expertise to help each other.
- Net Zero Standard: Under the new standard from the Science Based Targets initiative, companies must reduce emissions by at least 90% by 2050. Only then can they turn to offsets to neutralize emissions that cannot be cut – with a limit of 5-10% depending on the sector.
- Near-term Science Based Targets: What companies will do now, and over the next 5-10 years, to reduce emissions in line with what the latest climate science deems necessary to limit warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
- Long-term Science Based Targets: Show the degree of emission reductions needed for companies to reach net-zero before 2050 in line with keeping global temperatures to 1.5°C.
- Radical innovation: This type of innovation impact refers to the creation of completely new technologies (or knowledge) that can transform industries and behaviours.
- Systemic change: Is required when efforts to change when part of the system will fail to fix the problem. Systemic change means that change has to be fundamental and affects how the whole system functions.
- Tipping point: The moment in time when widespread, critical change occurs in terms of the adoption of an idea, trend or belief.
Climate change is an issue that affects us all and it is key that we can recognize the terminology for decarbonization processes to facilitate positive change.
Decarbonizing processes will require colossal changes to the ways in which we conduct business, but with wider access to the new technologies and processes outlined above, Net Zero is becoming an increasingly attainable target for those who take advantage of these techniques.
Are you trying to help your business reach net-zero? Get in touch to discuss how Decarbonization-as-a-Service can work for you.