Only four out of ten companies commit to reducing emissions

The Comprehensive Consultation of the UN Global Compact Spain indicates that, although 58% of the companies consulted have an environmental policy, there is a gap when implementing specific measures, such as the commitment to reduce emissions, specified by 41% of the companies.

More and more reports warn of the accelerated progress of climate change and the lack of ambition of current commitments, which are insufficient to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Therefore, all actors, including the business community, are required to have greater ambition to reduce global emissions by 45% compared to 2010 levels.

In this sense, it is revealing that only 4 out of 10 Spanish companies have publicly expressed their commitment to reduce their CO2 emissions. This is evidenced by the results of the Comprehensive Consultation of the UN Global Compact Spain. According to the document, although 58% of the companies consulted have an environmental policy, there is a gap when implementing specific measures, such as the commitment to reduce emissions, specified by 41% of the companies consulted. However, there are large differences depending on the size of the entity. While in large companies this commitment stands at 68.8%, among SMEs and the self-employed it is reduced to 32.8%.

It is also noteworthy that, despite the fact that SDG 13 on climate action is positioned as one of the most worked SDGs at the country level, ranking 5th, only 16% of Spanish business entities have a specific policy to combat this phenomenon. The areas most worked by Spanish companies of all those covered by the SDGs are gender equality (SDG 5) and decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), two aspects that were also very relevant in 2018 and 2020.

With respect to these years, the main difference has been the increase of companies working in the areas of responsible production and consumption (SDG 12) and affordable and clean energy (SDG 7). The first with a greater weight by SMEs, microenterprises and the self-employed, and the second most frequent among large companies. According to experts, greater awareness of circular economy aspects, and the increasingly pressing push for renewable energies to reduce CO2 emissions could have been the main reason for this increase.

On the other hand, the least worked areas of the SDGs continue to be those related to life below water (SDG 14) and zero hunger (SDG 2), challenges that, due to their sectoral nature or their low link with certain economic activities, are not so worked by companies, but that are fundamental for the achievement of the Agenda.

Comparing the global data of the consultation with those specific to Spanish companies adhering to the Global Compact, the differences are considerable. Compared to 50% of Spanish companies that have an in-depth knowledge of the SDGs, among those adhering to the initiative, the percentage rises to 82%. The prioritization of Objectives is also carried out by 70% of Spanish companies, increasing to 94% among those belonging to the Global Compact. Membership is, therefore, a differentiating element that allows companies to improve their performance in business sustainability. Throughout the report, other data are observed in which the companies adhering to the initiative obtain a higher performance, but it is especially interesting to see how, already from the base of the work in SDGs (knowledge and prioritization of Objectives), this differentiation is observed

In the words of Cristina Sánchez, executive director of the UN Global Compact Spain, “in recent years we have observed a growing interest within companies on environmental issues, but it is true that there is still a lack of maturity in strategies and it is necessary to move from commitment to action by establishing objectives and effective measures that promote their achievement. We are at a decisive and critical moment for the ecological transition.”

Regarding the most popular business measures for the fight against climate change, the results of the consultation show that Spanish companies focus on the application of circular economy processes, which have gone from being implemented by 44% of companies in 2020 to 51% in 2022 and the use of renewable energies, which increases 16 percentage points to 47%. These areas also coincide with two of the SDGs most worked on by the entities of our country, 12 and 7, which are in 3rd and 4th place respectively, ahead of SDG 13 on climate change. On the other hand, the results of the consultation confirm the increased awareness of Spanish companies about the impact of their activities on the planet. Specifically, 42% of Spanish companies already carry out the carbon footprint measurement exercise compared to 28% in 2020.

Another aspect to highlight is the evaluation of suppliers under environmental criteria, which grows from 24% in 2020 to 31% in 2022. This increase reflects a trend among our business fabric, which increasingly demands the integration of environmental and sustainability aspects in all links of the value chain. An aspect that occurs especially in large companies, where the percentage rises to 53.5%. Finally, sustainable mobility measures have lost steam in these two years, going from 16% in 2020 to 11% in 2020.

Source: The Economist