#climateagreement

I know it's just a planet, but - it's beautiful, isn't it? Hope we get to keep it. #climateagreement #parisagreement #ActOnClimate ❤️the 🌍like the 🌞🌙 and ✨

 A new renewable energy alliance between the wind energy and solar PV industries is calling on governments to implement energy transition action plans and cut red tape to meet Net Zero targets.  A joint study by the Global Solar Council (GSW) and the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) found that by 2030 there will be a 29% shortfall in the projected wind and solar capacity required to keep the world on course to limit global warming to 1.5˚C and sustain a pathway to carbon neutrality by 2050.  The two organisations, which represent private sector companies and associations across the wind and solar PV industries worldwide, today established the Global Renewable Energy Alliance to step up cooperation, knowledge exchange and joint advocacy. Together, wind and solar energy set to make up 70% of electricity generation by 2050, in the net zero roadmaps published by the IEA and IRENA earlier this year. At COP26, the global wind and solar industries are calling on governments to work with them to accelerate the deployment of these key technologies and: - Raise ambition for wind and solar power at national level through updated NDC targets and national climate strategies, which reflect higher capacity targets for renewable energy and ban new coal build/investment. - Implement effective policy and regulatory frameworks for procurement and delivery of renewable energy, including sensible and streamlined permitting schemes to lower project attrition rates, prioritised renewables-based generation and environmentally sound development. - Commit to rapid build-out of clean energy infrastructure including grids and transmission, through pooled expertise and increased dialogue among system operators, regulators and utilities to address system bottlenecks and the forward-planning required to integrate large-scale renewable energy. While there is a global focus on 2050, the 29% shortfall by 2030 sends a clear signal to policymakers that they are not moving fast enough to tackle climate change. Governments around the world need to realise this is the decade to make fundamental change.  The Global Wind Energy Council and the Global Solar Council have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form the Global Renewable Energy Alliance. The Climate emergency necessitates a common position and platform through which these two clean energy pillars can collectively accelerate the energy transition. Ben Backwell, GWEC CEO, said: “We are in a climate emergency, and we need to be taking action now. The renewables sector is united around one goal: ending that emergency while we still time to act. The Global Wind Energy Council is delighted to join forces with the Global Solar Council to help achieve this target.  “The gap to  required renewables capacity is a stark reminder of the urgency of the situation we all face. A 29% deficit means missing NDC and long-term net zero targets, which means failing  to successfully deal with the climate emergency. All countries and international organisations need to start making changes now to phase out coal, design new energy markets, modernize  grids and overhaul finance flows to grow the renewables sector.” Gianni Chianetta, Global Solar Council CEO, said: “Many eyes are focused on net zero by 2050 but we need to close the gap on our decarbonization pathway to 2030 if we want to keep the 1.5C target in sight, and 2030 is literally just around the corner. For governments looking to show they are acting now to raise their climate ambition and accelerate their NDCs, solar PV and wind are go-to technologies that are economically competitive and reliable today. “Partnering with the Global Wind Energy Council represents an important step for the Global Solar Council because we can combine our efforts in leading a rapid and just transition to clean, sustainable energy.” Read the full article

The UN in India commemorated the 76th year of its founding with a celebration of climate action in India, highlighting its enduring partnership with the Government and the people of India. The commemoration also showcased the incremental role young people are playing in India achieving its climate ambition. Speaking at the in-person commemoration, Union Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy, Bhagwanth Khuba, said, “Over the years, India and the UN have cooperated closely on our shared objectives of world peace and the guarantee of sustainable development. The Decade of Action for the Sustainable Development Goals is upon us. And unprecedented actions are needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. I believe the UN Day theme of climate action is timely.” The first-ever solar-powered UN Day, organized in partnership with the International Solar Alliance, highlighted India’s pioneering leadership on climate action.  Surya Bhavan – which hosts the ISA secretariat – was illuminated in the colours of the Sustainable Development Goals to underscore India’s ambition on renewables and commitment to the Agenda 2030. “India has already scripted history by halving poverty and by rapidly bringing lighted homes, safe sanitation, and clean fuel to millions. India has made tremendous gains in accelerating progress towards the SDGs. Now, India is about to script history on climate action. And we look forward to its contribution,” said Dr Yasmin Ali Haque, on behalf of the UN in India. India’s partnership with the UN spans all seven decades of its life. India signed the founding Charter of the United Nations in San Francisco on 26 June 1945. The Charter came into force on 24 October of the same year, an anniversary commemorated worldwide as UN Day.    “The values that have powered the UN Charter for the last 76 years — peace, development, human rights, and opportunity for all — have no expiry date. As we mark UN Day, let’s unite behind these ideals, and live up to the full promise, potential and hope of the United Nations,” said the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in his video message on UN Day. India has taken a global leadership position in combating climate change with its strategic and timely climate policies. Currently, India is on track to meet its climate goals. India stands fifth in overall renewable energy installed capacity, which stands at more than 141 gigawatts, about 37 per cent of the country’s total capacity. Dr Ajay Mathur, Director-General, International Solar Alliance, said, “Solar already provides the cheapest electricity in many parts of the world, but only when the sun is shining. At the upcoming CoP, we need to create international collaboration that enables cost-effective round-the-clock solar electricity. And collaboration to enable the ideas of young people to take root into concrete products and processes.” The UN Day event also marks the culmination of the UN in India’s #WeTheChangeNow campaign, which showcases innovative and equitable climate solutions pioneered by young Indians. On the occasion, the UN in India organized a dialogue between some of India’s climate trailblazers - Garvita Gulhati, Nidhi Pant and Sanju Soman and policymakers – Minister Khuba and Dr Mathur - on the role of young people in advancing climate action in India. Read the full article

“Equity and climate justice are touchstones of any global climate response,” said the Union Minister of Environment, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India Bhupender Yadav, at the National Conference on COP26 Charter of Actions in his Video Address. He further added that, “Concerted actions are needed in terms of cooperation between all countries especially with developed countries taking a lead in climate action through mitigation, adaptation and providing support to developing countries in terms of climate finance, capacity building and technology transfer.” The National Conference was organized by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), with support from the British High Commission, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, Tata Cleantech Capital Ltd. and Rockefeller Foundation. By acting as a platform for the dissemination of the messages of the COP26 Charter of Actions, a knowledge document prepared by TERI, the conference facilitated dialogues and discussions around raising climate ambition at the national and global level. The Charter of Actions prepared by TERI assimilates questions and challenges concerning key themes for India such as equity, green finance, adaptation & resilience, nature-based solutions, energy, clean transport, and business and industry. Welcoming experts across the domain at the National Conference, Dr. Vibha Dhawan, Director General, TERI said, “Successful climate negotiations in COP26 will further our fight against climate change. We at TERI believe that steering discussions around COP is imperative.” Delivering the opening address of the National Conference, Natalie Toms, Counsellor Economics and Prosperity, FCDO, British High Commission highlighted, “It was great to join TERI’s National Conference ahead of ahead of COP26, which will be a pivotal moment for the world to come together to accelerate action on climate; our last best chance to keep 1.5 degrees of global warming within reach. The UK and India are working together to tackle climate change under the UK-India Roadmap agreed by our Prime Ministers in May.” This was followed by a soft launch of the COP26 Charter of Actions, after which Dr. Shailly Kedia, Associate Director, TERI gave a presentation on the key messages from the COP26 Charter of Actions. Expanding on the “aspects of India’s leadership” in her presentation, Dr. Kedia said, “India’s normative and entrepreneurial leadership is key to achieve the goals of climate stabilization.” Subsequently, the National Conference saw an expert panel discussion on “Beyond Net-Zero: What Short and Long-term Strategies are needed for Realizing Twin Goals of Climate Stabilization and Equity?” which was chaired by Chandrashekhar Dasgupta, Former Climate Negotiator and Distinguished Fellow Emeritus, TERI. Speaking at the panel discussion, he said, “From a purely practical point of view, equity considerations apart, there can be no magical year in which every country, individually, whether it is one of the most affluent ones or a developing country can achieve net-zero in 2050.” In his address, Srinivas Gotru, Joint Secretary, United Nations Economic & Social (UNES) Division, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India said, “The technology support and mobilising finance needs to be highlighted in the international climate negotiations not just in COP26 but also beyond it.” The panel discussion saw experts highlight the importance of climate stabilization and equity while viewing them through the lens of both short-term and long-term strategies. At the discussion, Atul Bagai, Country Director - India, UNEP underscored, “The need to widen the dialogue of climate change from a focused group of experts to local, household level with a growing focus on adaptation.” “Global COPs and conversations notwithstanding, the locus of actions is firmly embedded in countries and they will go as fast as their national politics around climate change allow them. Where and how fast we move will be a constant tussle,” stressed Dr. Navroz K. Dubash, Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research in the discussion. Dr. Archna Negi, Associate Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University said, “The strategic concerns that will drive what India does in COP26 and they will derive from a lot of action that happens outside the COP track including G20 and BRICS.” “Global problem requires global solution, and nobody can address it in isolation. Collaboration around technology and fund transfer from developed countries to developing countries is essential,” underlined Manish Chourasia, Managing Director, Tata Cleantech Capital Ltd. “It is in India's interest that a serious effort is made globally to meet the 1.5°C goals. In this endeavour, we can either be a bystander or a leader,” expanded Chandra Bhushan, Chief Executive Officer, International Forum for Environment, Sustainability & Technology. The session was brought to a close by Manjeev Puri, Former Ambassador and Distinguished Fellow, TERI. Summarising the discussions of the conference and delivering the Vote of Thanks, he said, “India needs to act and can become a global leader but at the same time needs to protect its policy space. For a large developing country like India, a level playing field for international response is crucial.” Read the full article

Axis Bank has announced a series of commitments aligned to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), supporting India’s commitments under the Paris Agreement.  As part of its commitments, the Bank has set a target of incremental lending Rs. 30,000 crore over the next 5 years, under Wholesale Banking towards pertinent sectors, included in its Sustainable Financing Framework.  Axis Bank claims that it has now become the first financial institution in India to have set up a standalone Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) Committee at the Board level, underscoring the Bank’s strong intent to adopting ESG as a strategic driver for the organization’s plans and performance. The Bank has also established an ESG Steering Committee at the Management level, comprising senior business leaders to champion ESG integration across the organization. The Bank has announced its commitments ahead of the upcoming 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) at Glasgow, UK from 31 October - 12 November, where the Parties are expected to talk about enhancing their commitments made at COP21 at Paris in 2015.  The Bank’s commitments include:  - Incremental financing of Rs. 30,000 Crores under Wholesale Banking to sectors with positive social and environmental outcomes, by FY 2026  - Scaling down exposure to carbon-intensive sectors in its Wholesale banking business portfolio  - Expanding ESG risk coverage in credit appraisal under its ESG Policy for Lending  - Building and deploying an ESG risk assessment toolkit, with ESG stress testing and ESG scenario analysis, for its Large Corporate, SME and Agri-business verticals by FY 2023  - Making 5% of its retail Two-Wheeler loan portfolio as electric by FY 2024, and offering 0.5% interest waiver on new EV loans, effective immediately   - Incremental disbursement of Rs. 10,000 crores by FY 2024 under Asha Home Loans for affordable housing, and increasing share of women borrowers   - Reaching 30% female representation in its workforce by FY 2027, aligned to the Bank’s #ComeAsYouAre Diversity Charter  - Planting 2 million trees by FY 2027 across India towards contributing to creating a carbon sink  - Achieving carbon neutrality in its business operations   Commenting on this announcement, Rajesh Dahiya, Executive Director, Axis Bank said, ‘’As a financial institution, we are aware of our responsibility towards helping India move on the path of equitable and sustainable economic growth. Over the past two years, we have been working relentlessly on bolstering our holistic strategy, governance, and performance benchmarks around ESG. These commitments are part of our longer term ESG strategy woven around our purpose of ‘Banking that leads to a more inclusive and equitable economy, thriving community and a healthier planet’. We would like to think of this as only the beginning and we shall continue to explore scaling and strengthening our commitments over time.’’ Recently, the Bank launched its Sustainable Financing Framework that articulates the Bank’s strategy for financing ESG-aligned sectors and defines the project categories that the Bank shall consider to be eligible as ‘Sustainable’. The Framework has received a Second Party Opinion from Sustainalytics, thus providing the highest level of confidence on its alignment to global sustainable finance best practices. The Bank has also set up an ESG Working Group towards managing the Bank’s obligations and commitments under the Framework. In line with its ESG strategy, Axis Bank has successfully raised India’s first Sustainable USD AT1 notes of $ 600 million in the overseas markets on September 1, 2021. With this issuance, India is now only the second jurisdiction in Asia with an ESG AT1 issuance. The offering witnessed an overwhelming response from the investors, especially high- quality real money investors, with the order book being 3.8 times oversubscribed ahead of the Final Pricing Guidance announcement. Global investors, with their participation in this marquee transaction, have demonstrated confidence in the Bank's ability to positively impact India’s socio-economic and environmental landscape. Further, extending the reach and impact of its wider ESG aligned commitments, the Bank recently announced #ComeAsYouAre, - a charter of policies and practices that embrace diversity, equity and inclusion within the organization and for its customers. With these initiatives, Axis Bank became one of the first companies in the country to announce such a wide variety of inclusive steps for the LGBTQIA+ community.  Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bank has been working closely towards supporting its employees, customers, business partners, communities and government agencies towards fighting and emerging from the pandemic. It was amongst the first banks to put in place a Crisis and Emergency Response Team (CERT), which enabled the Bank to continue fulfilling its commitments to its stakeholders throughout the pandemic. Over the years, Axis Bank has been recognized at various platforms for its ESG-aligned performance and impact. The Bank has been on the prestigious FTSE4Good Indices by FTSE Russell for five consecutive years since 2016 and is among the top 10 constituents of the S&P BSE 100 ESG Index and the MSCI India ESG Leaders Index, and is a constituent of the NIFTY100 ESG Sector Leaders Index.  Read the full article

 IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), South Asia’s largest hospitality company, today launched an open call for innovators worldwide to bring efficient, climate-smart, cost-effective cooling solutions to India’s hospitality sector. The TechEmerge Sustainable Cooling Innovation Program in the Indian hospitality sector has been funded by the UK Government. It offers innovators market access and a combined pool of up to $500,000 in grant funding to pilot new solutions, including home-grown Indian solutions that reduce the high energy usage and climate impacts of cooling systems. “IHCL is committed to creating a positive impact on the environment. The company’s annual renewable energy consumption has increased considerably, with many of our key hotels powered by wind and solar energy sources,” said Gaurav Pokhariyal, Senior Vice President & Global Head Human Resources, IHCL. “Our sustainable cooling partnership with IFC is a win-win move that enables us to reduce operating costs, limit our greenhouse gas emissions and help shape hospitality to meet the needs of tomorrow.” Cooling currently accounts for about 10 per cent of greenhouse gases and 15 per cent of energy consumption worldwide. In a business-as-usual scenario, energy used for cooling is expected to triple by 2050 globally, while demand could increase five-fold in hot tropical countries like India. Read the full article

ENO India signed up #ClimateAgreement with Alpine Public School Khurja. A Tree Planting day was organized at the school joined by Miss Teen International contestants from 13 countries. WSSC Ambassador, Paavani, emphasized called upon the students and local community to join the efforts. ENO Country Coordinator, Rajiv K Shrivastava briefed local community about the initiative. #environmentonline #actnowindia #environmentonlineindia #wssc #econnect #missteeinint #missteeninternational #glamanand #alpine https://www.instagram.com/p/B6kBEKQHQKh/?igshid=mib92gnrx2oy

ENO India signed up #ClimateAgreement with Alpine School, Greater Noida. A Tree Planting day was organized at the school joined by Miss Teen International contestants from 13 countries. WSSC Ambassador, Paavani, emphasized called upon the students and local community to join the efforts. ENO Country Coordinator, Rajiv K Shrivastava praised the school management for the initiative. #environmentonline #actnowindia #environmentonlineindia #wssc #econnect #missteeinint #missteeninternational #glamanand #alpine https://www.instagram.com/p/B6cTlhhnRKQ/?igshid=1dmmzcc7l4e4o