Climate Coffee Newsletter #14 – 14th April 2022

Here’s a special Thursday edition of the Sust Global Climate Coffee 🌱☕️ newsletter! This week we cover the unprecedented rise in shareholder proposals for climate resolutions, intriguing new satellite developments by NASA which track climate change, and a massive dual heatwave at the Earth’s poles which is alarming climate scientists.

Let’s dive in!

CLIMATE REGULATION AND INVESTORS

Shareholder meeting season is upon us, and climate change is topping the list with a record number of shareholder proposals filed so far, making up 20% of resolutions. What are investors asking for? More specificity in how companies are setting climate goals: emissions from their entire value chains, detailed net-zero transition plans & alignment of carbon reduction targets with the most ambitious goal under the Paris Agreement (see graph below).

This combined with the recent SEC climate guidance shows a clear trend of greater pressure on companies. It will take a few years for the regulation dust to settle and for companies to become legally liable for their climate plans, but for now, stakeholder pressure will hopefully have the same effect.

CLIMATE RISK, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

NASA finds two new space-based ways to track climate change
Satellite developments addressing climate change are constantly evolving, and NASA has recently launched two new space-based studies to observe climate change across the planet.

The first is a dataset from the Global Ecosystem Dyanmics Investigation mission, a high resolution lidar instrument aboard the International space station, that has estimated the total amount of above-ground forest biomass and its carbon storage capacity. The second is a satellite dataset that will develop a method of monitoring underground water loss, a serious matter for the agriculture industry.

Heatwaves at both of Earth’s poles alarm climate scientists

The Earth’s poles are facing a massive dual heatwave, with Antarctic areas reaching 40 degrees Celsius above normal temperatures and the North pole regions hitting 30 degrees Celsiis above usual levels!

This is causing alarm among climate scientists who have warned the unprecedented events could signal a faster and more abrupt climate breakdown. The Antarctic should be cooling after its summer, and the Arctic only coming out from winter as the days lengthen. However, the rapid rise in temperature is indicating that this impact could be irreversible. The danger is triggering climate change at an accelerated level, and will inevitably contribute to warming sea temperatures and sea level rise across the planet.

At Sust Global, we can help you manage your physical climate risk exposure, so please get in contact with us if you have any questions. Happy Easter everyone! 🐣

✌️, Josh

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