As the climate suffers, enforcement needed for corporate green pledges

(Context, 14 Apr 2023) With many net-zero goals amounting to little more than greenwashing, new measures are required to bring accountability, experts say.

Pledges to slash climate-changing emissions to nearly zero now cover more than 90% of the world's economy. But emissions themselves are still rising, despite scientists warning they must plunge by nearly half this decade to keep people safe.

Dealing with climate change through voluntary commitments, especially by businesses, "has simply not worked", noted Arianne Griffith, a lawyer and corporate accountability expert with advocacy group Global Witness. 

New transparency and accountability mechanisms are needed to ensure that corporations and governments meet their promises on climate action, she and others said this week at the Skoll World Forum, an expert gathering focused on solving global problems.

Griffith said those measures could include things like a European Union Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) - which Global Witness and its partners have pushed for since 2019 in Brussels, despite corporate opposition.

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Context, 14 Apr 2023: As the climate suffers, enforcement needed for corporate green pledges