Environment
CLIMATE CHANGE MEANS GOING
BEYOND THE OBVIOUS
By Olivier Blum , chief strategy and sustainability officer – Schneider Electric
Climate change is the biggest challenge facing humanity today . It ’ s global , all-pervasive , and accelerating .
The climate change solution , therefore , has to be equally comprehensive : it requires us all – governments , companies , investors , and individuals – to deploy not just single-track solutions and long-term pledges , but a whole arsenal of approaches and concrete actions , across multiple fronts – now .
At the government level , thankfully , awareness and action have picked up substantially .
Over just the past year , we ’ ve seen China , Japan and others make ambitious commitments to a greener future . The European Green Deal aims to make the EU economy climate neutral in 2050 by investing in environmentally friendly technologies , decarbonising the energy sector , and ensuring that buildings are more energy-efficient , among other things .
Further in the US , President Joe Biden ’ s virtual climate summit on Earth Day – 22 April , injected more global momentum into the drive to decarbonise the global economy .
Companies must be part of the solution – and there are many ways we can do this
All this is of course welcome . But governments can ’ t , and shouldn ’ t , go it alone . Companies , too , need to be part of the climate change solution .
After all , corporations such as Schneider Electric are major
Change requires taking day-today actions through constant reminders , goal setting and perseverance .
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RACA Journal I March 2022 www . hvacronline . co . za