According to the latest status report by the TCFD, no organization is doing a stellar job of reporting.
Reporting without a management system with clear actions is “recycled insanity, while expecting better results”, with apologies to Einstein.
As no one company, community, or country will be able to solve climate change on their own, collaboration is critical.
“Are You Climate Ready? can reduce the cost for those who collaborate.
How?
While there are many good reasons to subscribe, here are a few that could apply to any organization.
We need to collaborate to accelerate climate action. This is an urgent, critical time-dated global emergency. If you are unaware of this fact …
If a company is in a country that has already mandated reporting that uses the TCFD, AYCR can help you improve your external reporting.
It is important to remember that as AYCR addresses a systems approach, the value proposition offers more than just one thing.
While there are longer term and less noticeable changes, what tends to get people’s attention, too late, are acute events, such as extreme weather or natural disaster.
AYCR 1 includes a set of twenty questions that was designed to help people:
Utility for the Subscriber: “Are You Climate Ready?” can influence better decision making in a professional context.
Dr. Mathew Kiernan, one of our external reviewers, said:
“As someone who’s been in the carbon finance/investment world for over 30 years, I find this new matrix to be impressively well thought out and comprehensive. It expands upon and provides an even more detailed roadmap than the TCFD recommendations themselves, and will create useful, practical, and ambitious targets for companies.”
AYCR 2:
Increasing the amount of reliable information on climate-related risks and opportunities in any sector will strengthen the stability of the financial system, contribute to greater understanding of climate risks and facilitate financing the transition to a more stable and sustainable economy.
There are 125 questions that are divided between top management and corporate directors.
Understandably, corporate directors will ask top management to provide answers, and top management will ask their EMS professionals to provide the answers and report back. This follows a process already in an EMS.
Each question is linked to primary and, when appropriate, secondary sources of objective evidence in an EMS. Sources reference the clause(s) in the international standard, ISO 14001. While the standard offers a common framework for collaboration, every EMS is as unique as a thumbprint. Referencing the standard simplifies the feedback process and enables better analysis of the common strengths and challenges that Subscribers are facing.
Value to the Subscriber: A robust, credible, and reliable environmental management system (EMS) provides an organization with objective evidence that can demonstrate competency in how it is managing climate risk, as well as other environmental issues. An EMS also investigates opportunity. We think the fact that there is opportunity, not only in having an EMS, but the objective evidence will help organizations understand where investments in real green products and services can improve their productivity, profitability, and prosperity, which has spin off benefits.
Value to the Market: It’s not only financial institutions that benefit from AYCR 2; every organization has a carbon footprint. So the more organizations that follow a consistent systems approach using an accepted international standard to manage risks and opportunities, the better the odds of success.
In atmospheric terms, drawdown is that point in time at which greenhouse gases peak and begin to decline on a year-to year basis.
AYCR 3 builds on the business and environmental objectives established in an EMS. It links these to opportunities to reduce or sequester carbon.
AYCR 3:
Project Drawdown offers over eighty technology solutions to reduce greenhouse gases by reducing or sequestering carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere.
Opportunity for the Subscriber: AYCR 3 provides Subscribers the opportunity to assess solutions that are relevant to their organization. By connecting solutions to drawdown and SDG targets, the Subscriber can enhance their decisions and accelerate actions to meet Net Zero and other commitments.
Subscribers share specific data from the AYCR 1, 2 and 3. Data is anonymized, aggregated and then analyzed to:
AYCR 4 will be available after the first wave of data is received. Subsequent reports will share progress with Subscribers periodically.
Subscribers are also provided with periodic insights on developments pertaining to international standards that may affect their EMS.
Benefit for the Subscriber: The purpose of sharing of data is to accelerate action and improve a systems approach through collaboration.
Occasionally, highlights will also be shared in important social, industry and mainstream media outlets. Only Subscribers will receive the deep insights. This is a benefit of collaboration.
