COP26 Summary and Carbon Neutrality for clients with TGN
The UN COP26 meeting was a big deal with negotiators from EVERY country in the world, over 40,000 people involved. Glasgow was the setting.
They all signed the Glasgow Climate Pact after two weeks of intense negotiations.
It is not what should have happened but given the spectrum of positions it is a step in the right direction.
Right now we are on course for a rise of 2.5-2.8C which would be devastating to the world as we know it. The Paris Agreement in 2015 aimed to limit the rise to 2C or hopefully 1.5C.
However one of the successes was to include the requirement that countries must ‘improve’ their pledges annually from now on towards 2030 national climate targets. Keep the pressure on.
Summary on help for developing countries from COP26 is not encouraging. Realistically, it looks like the developed world looked after itself. The billions promised in support are not being delivered.
For the first time there was a commitment to ‘accelerate efforts towards’ phasing down coal power, an end to inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. Meaning… reduce coal usage BUT it had been hoped this would be the COP or year that a commitment to ‘phasing out’ coal could be agreed. Just how much this meant is demonstrated by the fact the COP26 President Alok Sharma was reduced to tears after the wording changed from ‘phasing out’ to ‘phasing down’.
My take is that a top down approach is happening (governments legislating), but not fast enough, and we would be fool hardy to rely on our elected (democracies) or unelected (non-democracies) leaders to make the shifts that we need to make in time. Equally we can’t rely on our corporate leaders to make it happen.
It has to be a trilateral approach - governments, corporations / business and individuals.
So we’ve really got to get off our collective asses and do it individually, I admit I could do more, but after 25 years of studying this subject I know what to do and am doing some of it… I probably just need to be kept more accountable, and that is something that TGN is good at, so if you would like to join me on this journey as an individual/ family to committing to make the changes necessary to become carbon neutral, I’d be delighted to hear from you. It’s not as hard as it sounds.
Going forward TGN - The Green Network -who offer ‘boutique investment and insurance advice for a Carbon Constrained Future’ are seeking to fine tune our offering to, how to invest and manage risk whilst also helping create a better future for humanity, in this regard I am seeking feedback on a re-brand to -
TGN - Investment, Insurance and Individual Carbon Neutrality - Climate Change Financial Advisers
“TGN - The Green Network creating a better future by helping clients become carbon neutral, investing in our carbon constrained future and managing future risks.”
My thinking here is that we already help client manage risk, finances and monitor investments, so why not also add in the elephant in the room - Carbon footprints and how to achieve carbon neutrality. It’s kind of another of those things, I’m thinking here - insurances, wills, taxes, getting fit, home maintenance etc - things that we have such good intentions about, that we intend to do and just because we don’t have enough time we tend to put off and never get around to it. Our carbon footprint is becoming more and more an actual thing we need to think about. I think that I can help clients achieve it quite easily… let me know if you’re interested… you can make a time to talk by clicking here otherwise it will be a part of clients annual reviews going forward should they choose. For non-clients we can obviously look at investments and insurances too - tick off a number of those should do tasks all at one time.
