G7 sustainability pledges are not bold enough

The latest G7 summit was held at Borgo Egnazia, in Italy, between 13 and 15 June 2024.  

Our Standards Manager Margherita Barbieri attended and made some reflections upon its pledges in a focussed opinion piece published on Medium:  

G7 commitments on climate, biodiversity and pollution are welcome yet still fall short  

The summit recognized that climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution are a triple-interconnected crisis, and proposed targeted actions, including: 

• Measures to cut emissions, shift away from fossil fuels and increase renewable energy generation; 
• Steps to reduce pollution and guarantee protection and restoration of ecosystems; 
• Focus on a just transition, which includes vulnerable communities and social segments, leaving no one behind.  

As this G7 highlighted, a holistic approach to climate change is essential and it must be driven by robust corporate accountability. There is, however, a lack of boldness in the actions undertaken:

We might be tempted to salute these commitments with nothing but enthusiasm, but unfortunately not all that glitters is gold. Despite the positive overtones, the summit lacked the ambition to propose any new – and much-needed – actions against climate change. Yet how can the corporate world contribute where international policy setters fall short? Here, we can draw inspiration from the G7 communiqué: “Availability, comparability, and credibility of robust information in the financial sector and real economy”, which underscores the importance of effective sustainability reporting practices by the private sector.

Margherita Barbieri, GRI Standards Manager

GRI’s recognized the interconnection between climate change, biodiversity and climate and reflects it in its Standards: the recently launched GRI 101: Biodiversity, as well as the upcoming ones on Climate Change and Energy.

Photo credit: © GRI