Raising Corporate Ambition for Environmental Sustainability: Canada’s Road to COP27

Environmental degradation, a direct consequence of our ambitious economic activity, fueled and exacerbated by the climate crisis, is the defining plight of our time. With rising temperatures increasing the severity of weather extremes, threatening food and water security, and fueling economic disruption, national and corporate commitments must become action. Businesses play a crucial role, not just in accelerating climate action, but in the future of environmental sustainability. The future that we want requires a mindset shift; it requires adaptation, mitigation and financing. The need to strengthen ambition in these three pillars of collective climate action are the core takeaways outlined by the Parties at last year’s COP26.

In this webinar series, we’ll use these three pillars as a lens to discuss the actions, tools and partnerships businesses are leveraging to advance action on some of Canada’s most pressing environmental challenges ahead of this year’s COP27. We’ll navigate the challenges of future-proofing Canadian businesses against impending environmental and climate risks and take a look at Canada’s international efforts to scale progress.

Session 2 – Taking the Lead: How Canadian Businesses are Accelerating Action for a Sustainable Blue Economy

Date: Thursday, September 15, 2022
Time: 3 PM to 4 PM ET

Integral to the prosperity of humankind, oceans mobilize and regulate a global system that creates the essential elements needed for a habitable planet. This global resource not only acts as a buffer against the impacts of global warming, absorbing 30% of carbon emissions produced by human activities, but it also sustains the livelihoods of over three billion people. A growing global economy will require the expanded use of oceans in order to produce and transport food, energy and raw materials. With the health of the oceans deteriorating quickly due to increasing temperatures, pollution and acidification, businesses and governments must recognize the urgency and global importance of healthy oceans and prioritize key actions to promote their wellbeing.

In this webinar, we will look at how Canadian businesses and other key stakeholders are acting on this emergency while discussing the challenges and opportunities of adaptation, partnerships and the investments needed to further support sustainable ocean health and economies.

Session 4 – Overcoming Barriers: How Protecting Nature Can Future-proof Business and Mitigate Climate Change

Date: Thursday, November 24, 2022
Time: 3 PM to 4 PM ET
Recent data shows that biodiversity is declining at a rate unseen in human history. Current extinction rates are 1,000 times higher than natural background rates, with models suggesting future rates of extinction are likely to be 10,000 times higher. These rates are unsustainable for the net-zero, nature-positive world that we want and pose significant biodiversity-related risks to businesses. Ecological risks on operations, liability, regulatory, reputational, market and financial risks are just some of the difficulties businesses face without prioritizing greater environmental responsibility.

In this webinar, we’ll take a look at how businesses are navigating these risks to build and scale a more nature-positive future. We’ll bring together key stakeholders to discuss the challenges of mitigating biodiversity loss and the opportunities of nature-based solutions in the lead-up to the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) held later this year in Canada.