We witness the effects of climate change in the rising frequency and intensity of water shortages, severe weather disasters, floods and storms worldwide. Climate change, and the associated political and social response, is presenting increasing material risks and opportunities to business and industrial sectors.
The World Economic Forum's 2016 Global Risks Perception Survey indicates that the failure of climate change mitigation and adaptation is perceived in 2016 as the most impactful risk for the years to come among 29 global risks. In this context, forward thinking business and governments are beginning to identify their exposure to climate change issues, understand the financial implications and develop mitigation strategies and adaptation response plans in order to 'climate ready ' their operations.
The Rio 2016 Olympic Games are making history by leaving a significant legacy of low-carbon technologies in Latin America. The Rio 2016 Organizing Committee and The Dow Chemical Company, the Official Chemistry Company of the Olympic Games, are projecting to deliver more than 2 million tonnes of third-party verified greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions by all projects and actions implemented to fulfill the commitment of hosting a global event with minimal carbon impact.
Dow selected ERM to provide third-party validation of projects against the Dow Climate Solutions Framework and to verify GHG emissions reductions towards the mitigation of Rio 2016’s owned and associated footprints. Commenting, Braulio Pikman, senior partner at ERM, stated “Our extensive process, which combines auditing of project documentation with verifying actual implementation evidences, determined that the portfolio is expected to generate more than 2.2 million tonnes of climate benefits through the end of 2026.”