|
The Corporate Leaders Group on Climate Change has confirmed
that over 340 companies from 38 countries have now signed
up to its latest Communiqué calling on the world's governments
to take ambitious action to limit average global temperature
increases to below 2°C.
The 2°C
Challenge Communiqué was formally launched at the
Durban Summit in a move designed to step up pressure on diplomats
as they attempted to broker a new global agreement to curb
greenhouse gas emissions.
The Communiqué builds on the previous Copenhagen and Durban
Communiqués released at the past two UN climate change summits
and calls on governments to make "visible progress" towards
a new international treaty, arguing that "without this agreement,
business lacks the clarity and certainty needed to invest
to its fullest potential".
"We must not let short-term concerns, however important,
drive climate change off the agenda," the statement adds.
Sandrine Dixson-Declève, director of the Corporate Leaders'
Group, said that this "sends a really clear political signal
that businesses want a robust, effective agreement out of
Durban".
"These companies know that this issue is too important to
just kick the can down the road. Real progress is required,"
she added.
The Communiqué has been backed by some of the world's largest
and most influential companies, including Shell, Diageo, Unilever,
Tesco, BAA, Cisco and SAP. It has also secured signatories
from around the globe with 195 European firms joined by 54
from the Americas, 22 from Africa and 71 from Asia Pacific.
Unlike the previous Communiqués organised by the Corporate
Leaders Group, the document is not solely focused on the UN
summit and the NGO will continue to seek signatories through
to the Rio+20 Summit next July.
A spokesman for the organisation acknowledged that the number
of signatories is well below the more than 900 companies that
signed up for the original Copenhagen Communiqué, but insisted
that support for the document is continuing to grow.
"We spent six months building support for the Copenhagen
Communiqué, but the 2°C Challenge Communiqué was only launched
about a month ago and we are expecting to see more signatories
come onboard right through to the Rio Summit," he explained.
"The latest Communiqué is also the most demanding we have
ever produced and yet there are still hundreds of the world's
largest companies signed up to it. It just proves there are
plenty of progressive businesses out there."
|
