A green building, as defined by the World Green Building Council, is one that minimises or eliminates negative environmental impacts while maximising positive contributions to the climate and natural surroundings throughout its design, construction, and operation. Key features of a green building include the use of renewable energy sources, non-toxic and sustainable materials, water conservation systems, energy efficiency, and waste reduction strategies. These elements work together to create buildings that are environmentally responsible, resource-efficient, and beneficial to both occupants and the planet.

A sustainable economy refers to an economic system that seeks to balance growth with social, environmental, and cultural responsibility. Rather than prioritising economic growth at the expense of the planet and society, it aims for long-term prosperity by integrating sustainability into decision-making processes. This approach not only benefits the environment but also offers advantages to businesses by reducing waste, improving efficiency, and fostering resilience, ultimately contributing to more sustainable and responsible growth for both corporations and society.

Corporate sustainability is crucial because it encourages organisations to adopt practices that prioritise long-term environmental, social, and economic well-being, rather than focusing solely on short-term profits. This is particularly important given that just 100 companies are responsible for more than 70% of global emissions. As a result, corporations must take greater responsibility for their environmental and societal impact to drive meaningful change and contribute to a more sustainable future.

Sustainable building materials are those that have a minimal environmental impact, are renewable, or can be recycled. Examples include bamboo, which grows rapidly and is highly durable; straw bale, which provides excellent insulation and is biodegradable; and rammed earth, a natural material with low energy consumption. Other sustainable materials include recycled steel, reclaimed wood, and locally sourced stones, which help reduce transportation emissions and support local economies. These materials contribute to energy efficiency, reduced waste, and a lower overall environmental footprint in construction.

A wide variety of materials can be recycled, including paper, cardboard, plastics, glass, metals, and electronics. Other recyclable materials include textiles, rubber, and certain types of construction waste. Recycling these materials helps reduce landfill waste, conserve natural resources, and lower energy consumption associated with producing new products.

Recycling involves breaking down used materials to create new products, often of similar value or quality to the original. In contrast, upcycling refers to repurposing materials to create something new, typically of higher value or quality than the original item. While recycling focuses on processing materials for reuse, upcycling emphasises creativity and adding value through innovation.

Water conservation is the practice of using water efficiently and minimising waste. It is crucial because freshwater is a limited resource, and many regions around the world are already facing water scarcity, making it essential to preserve and manage this vital resource for future generations.

Greywater is wastewater generated from household activities like laundry, dishwashing, and showering. After treatment, it can be safely reused for non-potable purposes such as landscape irrigation. Using greywater helps conserve freshwater, reduce overall water consumption, and minimise wastewater generation.

Sustainable water management practices for businesses and industries include adopting water-efficient technologies, implementing water recycling and reuse systems, reducing water losses through better leak detection and prevention, and closely monitoring water usage to identify areas for improvement and efficiency. These practices help conserve water, reduce operational costs, and minimise environmental impact.

We can protect and conserve our oceans and other bodies of water by minimising plastic waste and other pollutants, supporting sustainable fishing practices, preserving and restoring wetlands and marine habitats, and promoting water conservation and sustainable management practices. These efforts help maintain the health of aquatic ecosystems and ensure clean water for future generations.

Communities can reduce their environmental impact by embracing sustainable practices like reducing waste, conserving energy, encouraging green transportation, and protecting natural areas.

Social sustainability refers to a community’s ability to maintain a fair, inclusive, and healthy society for all its members. It encompasses access to basic needs like food, water, shelter, and healthcare, along with opportunities for education, employment, and social participation. Social sustainability is crucial because it fosters social cohesion, enhances quality of life, and helps to reduce inequalities, ensuring long-term well-being for all.

Sustainable agriculture is a farming approach that prioritises environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and economic viability. It involves practices that enhance soil health, conserve water, reduce reliance on synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and preserve biodiversity, ensuring long-term productivity and ecosystem health.

Regenerative agriculture is a farming approach focused on restoring and enhancing soil health, boosting biodiversity, and sequestering carbon to mitigate climate change. It incorporates practices such as crop rotation, cover cropping, reduced tillage, and holistic livestock management, all aimed at regenerating ecosystems and improving long-term sustainability.

Farmers can minimise the environmental impact of their operations by adopting sustainable practices like conservation tillage, cover cropping, crop rotation, and integrated pest management. These methods help conserve soil and water, reduce erosion, enhance biodiversity, and decrease reliance on synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, leading to more resilient and eco-friendly agricultural systems.

Biodiversity is essential for sustainable agriculture as it provides vital ecosystem services, including pollination, pest control, and nutrient cycling. By fostering biodiversity on their farms, farmers can enhance soil health and resilience, reduce the need for chemical inputs, and improve crop yields. This can be achieved through practices such as planting diverse crops, creating habitats like hedgerows for wildlife, and incorporating agroforestry techniques.

Agriculture can play a key role in mitigating climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sequestering carbon in soils and vegetation. This can be accomplished through sustainable practices such as conservation agriculture, agroforestry, and integrating livestock into cropping systems, all of which enhance carbon storage, improve soil health, and reduce emissions from farming activities.

Organic farming offers several benefits, including improved soil health, reduced water pollution, and lower greenhouse gas emissions. By avoiding synthetic chemicals, organic farms promote environmental sustainability and protect human health, while fostering biodiversity and enhancing ecosystem resilience.

Farmers can ensure the long-term sustainability of their operations by implementing practices that enhance soil health, conserve water, and protect biodiversity. Additionally, incorporating renewable energy sources and collaborating with local communities to promote sustainable land use practices can further support the resilience and sustainability of their farms.

Zero Waste is a lifestyle focused on minimising waste by reducing, reusing, and recycling as much as possible. It encourages individuals to be mindful of their consumption and waste, aiming to send nothing to landfills or incinerators. By adopting zero waste practices, we can reduce our environmental impact and contribute to a healthier planet.

1. Defining Performance Goals and KPIs: Establish clear sustainability objectives and identify key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress.
2. Measuring Performance: Collect and analyse data related to the defined goals and KPIs, ensuring accurate and reliable measurements.
3. Evaluating Performance: Assess the data to understand how well the organisation is meeting its sustainability targets, identifying areas for improvement.
4. Reporting: Compile the findings into a clear, transparent, and comprehensive report that communicates the organisation’s sustainability efforts and results to stakeholders.

A Carbon Credit is a tradable certificate that represents the reduction or removal of one metric ton of greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere. It serves as a measurable and verifiable unit used to offset emissions produced by an individual, company, or activity, helping to contribute to global efforts in reducing overall emissions.

Carbon credits are generated through certified projects that reduce, avoid, or remove greenhouse gases (GHGs) from the atmosphere. These projects can take many forms, but nature-based solutions are particularly effective in addressing climate change. These initiatives often focus on protecting or restoring ecosystems such as forests, grasslands, or wetlands. For example, reforestation projects (ARR) aim to restore forest cover in specific areas, while protective initiatives like REDD+ focus on preserving existing forests.

Carbon credits are certified by globally recognised standards, which are managed by program operators, and are verified by third-party auditors to ensure they meet key criteria for integrity, transparency, and market fungibility.

Some of the major certification standards include the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) by Verra, the Gold Standard, and the American Carbon Registry (ACR). These organisations assess and verify emission reduction projects to ensure that the resulting carbon credits are real, measurable, and additional, meaning they represent genuine and additional environmental benefits.

Carbon credits are essential in the fight against climate change, as they channel investment into climate-positive projects focused on carbon capture and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has emphasised the need to remove 6 gigatons of CO₂ from the atmosphere each year to effectively mitigate global warming.

Carbon credits play a key role in this effort by supporting projects that contribute to this goal.

Moreover, carbon credits are aligned with the targets set in the Paris Agreement, which aims to limit global warming to well below 2°C, preferably to 1.5°C. By purchasing and utilising carbon credits, companies actively contribute to global emission reduction efforts and support the achievement of these critical climate targets.

Carbon Markets are trading systems where carbon credits are bought and sold. Companies or individuals can participate in these markets to offset their greenhouse gas emissions by purchasing carbon credits from projects that reduce, remove, or avoid emissions.

Each tradable carbon credit represents one metric tonne of carbon dioxide (CO₂) or its equivalent in another greenhouse gas that has been reduced, sequestered, or avoided. Once a credit is used to offset emissions, it is retired from the market and can no longer be traded.

The Carbon Cycle refers to the continuous movement and transformation of carbon between living organisms and the environment. Carbon is a fundamental element that cannot be broken down into simpler substances, much like other elements such as oxygen, nitrogen, calcium, iron, and hydrogen.

Carbon is found in both living organisms, like plants and animals, and non-living things, such as rocks and soil. It exists in various forms—solids (e.g., diamonds, coal), liquids (e.g., crude oil), and gases (e.g., carbon dioxide). Often called the “building block of life,” carbon is essential for life as it forms the backbone of organic molecules that make up all living organisms.

Scope 4 emissions, also known as “avoided emissions,” represent a relatively new concept in environmental sustainability and carbon accounting. Introduced by the World Resources Institute in 2013, Scope 4 offers an innovative approach to measuring a company’s impact on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Unlike traditional Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, which focus on emissions directly or indirectly tied to a company’s operations and supply chain, Scope 4 emissions account for the reductions in GHG emissions resulting from the use of a product or service. These emissions reflect the positive environmental impact outside the product’s life cycle or value chain, directly linked to its adoption or utilisation.

Examples of Scope 4 emissions include products and services that help reduce overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through enhanced efficiency or functionality. For instance, low-temperature detergents minimise energy use during washing, fuel-saving tires reduce fuel consumption and emissions, and teleconferencing equipment and services reduce the need for travel, thereby avoiding emissions associated with transportation. These products and services contribute to lowering emissions outside their direct life cycle, offering significant environmental benefits.

Scope 4 emissions are important because they offer a more holistic view of a company’s environmental impact by highlighting the positive contributions of its products or services in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This aspect of carbon accounting is essential for understanding the full scope of a company’s carbon footprint and its role in supporting a net-zero economy. Reporting on Scope 4 emissions helps capture not only the emissions a company is directly or indirectly responsible for, but also the emissions it helps prevent through the use of its products or services, emphasising its proactive environmental impact.

Currently, reporting Scope 4 emissions is not mandatory. The GHG Protocol, which sets the standard for emissions reporting, has not yet officially recognised Scope 4. However, voluntarily reporting these emissions can offer a more comprehensive understanding of a company’s environmental impact and progress toward sustainability goals.

As of 2014, global sea levels were 6 cm higher than the 1993 average, and they continue to rise at a rate of approximately 0.3 cm per year.

NASA’s analysis reveals that about one-third of this rise is due to the expansion of warmer ocean water, one-third from ice loss in the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, and the remaining third from melting mountain glaciers.

It’s also important to note that sea level rise is not uniform across the globe. While oceans are interconnected, they do not warm at the same rate, and the impact of melted water varies by region. This results in significant differences in sea level rise depending on the location.

The cost of climate change is staggering—trillions, not millions. Beyond the environmental consequences, the financial impact is immense. In the U.S. alone, extreme weather events driven by climate change, along with the health effects of fossil fuel use, have cost the government $240 billion annually over the past decade. To put that in perspective, $240 billion could fund free college tuition for 11.2 million students. Plan A seeks to address the gap between current investment levels and the urgent actions needed to prevent these costs from spiralling further.

According to the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), the top five greenest countries in the world are Finland, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, and Slovenia. Finland leads the list, largely due to its strong societal commitment to achieving a carbon-neutral society.

The EPI researchers highlight Finland’s ambitious environmental policies, stating: “Finland’s goal of sourcing 38% of its final energy from renewable sources by 2020 is legally binding, and the country already generates nearly two-thirds of its electricity from renewable or nuclear power sources.” These countries set a global example by prioritising sustainability, reducing emissions, and embracing renewable energy solutions.

Climate tech encompasses technologies and services designed to decarbonise the global economy and address the challenges of climate change. These solutions aim to mitigate climate change by reducing future emissions, removing existing carbon from the atmosphere, or enhancing resilience to its impacts.

Climate tech companies innovate across diverse industries, developing products and services that drive sustainability. Their contributions range from renewable energy solutions and carbon capture technologies to sustainable agriculture and climate-resilient infrastructure. Given the need for systemic transformation, climate tech spans a wide variety of sectors and business models, playing a pivotal role in the transition to a greener, more sustainable future.

The climate tech market has experienced remarkable growth in recent years. In 2021, Silicon Valley Bank reported that venture capital investments in climate tech startups reached $56 billion across over 1,600 deals. Despite a general market downturn in 2022, climate tech remained resilient, with the popular Climate Tech VC newsletter estimating that companies in this sector raised over $40 billion across 1,000 venture and growth deals. PwC’s 2022 State of Climate Tech report highlighted that climate tech investments accounted for over 25% of all venture capital deals that year.

Silicon Valley Bank further estimated that global annual financing for the energy transition currently stands at $3.5 trillion, encompassing public and private, debt and equity funding. To achieve the goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C, this figure would need to increase to $5.6 trillion annually. Specifically, private equity funding for the energy transition, including venture capital, must grow by an estimated 21%, underscoring the critical role of climate tech in driving sustainable economic transformation.

The distinction between cleantech and climate tech lies in their scope and focus. Cleantech broadly encompasses technologies that mitigate environmental harm across areas such as air pollution, waste management, and clean water. In contrast, climate tech is specifically targeted at addressing climate change, focusing on solutions for reducing carbon emissions, removing greenhouse gases, and enhancing climate resilience. Despite this differentiation, the two categories often overlap, particularly in areas like renewable energy and electric vehicles.

Cleantech gained prominence during the early 2000s, when venture capital investments surged in renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles—sectors that were still nascent at the time. This wave of investment, primarily in solar and wind power, culminated in the so-called “Green Bubble,” which burst during the 2008 financial crisis, resulting in a decline in cleantech funding.

The term climate tech began gaining traction around 2019, reflecting a renewed focus on combating climate change with innovative technologies. While climate tech continues to include renewables and EVs, it emphasizes differentiated solutions that enhance the scalability, efficiency, or capacity of established technologies. Additionally, climate tech has expanded into emerging sectors such as carbon tech, which focuses on carbon capture, storage, and utilisation—areas that were less developed during the cleantech boom. This evolution signals a broader, more targeted approach to leveraging technology for a sustainable future.