By Colleen Connors
Climate Week NYC is back and bigger than ever. Climate Group, the organizers of the “largest annual climate event of its kind,” can shout that claim from the rooftops this year with over 900 events — a 50 per cent increase from last year — at venues across the city over the seven-day period.
The week’s activities kicked off on Sunday with the Climate Week NYC Opening Ceremony, which featured such notable speakers as U.S. Senator for Hawaii Brian Schatz, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland, and former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, as well as CEOs and representatives from the United Nations and civil society.
Across town, another flurry of activity is brewing with the start of the High-Level Week of the UN General Assembly. As nearly 150 Heads of State, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, descend upon Manhattan, barricades and checkpoints are going up, with “frozen zone” street closures enforced to safeguard high-profile attendees. Between both events , the energy across Manhattan is palpable. While most Climate Week NYC attendees can be described “stubborn optimists” about society’s ability to tackle the worst impacts of climate change, critics voice concerns that events of this nature are all talk, no action.
Climate Week NYC is the largest annual climate event of its kind, bringing together over 600 events and activities across the City of New York – in person, hybrid and online.
Attendees and speakers at Climate Week NYC are well aware of this criticism, yet the urgency of runaway climate change and the shrinking window to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C are driving a renewed sense of purpose and action. 2024 saw both the hottest summer on record globally and one of the worst wildfire seasons in Canada’s history, two key symptoms of a rapidly warming climate, making clear that there is no time to waste in transforming our economies and society to meet the climate challenge.
Panelists and keynote speakers from all sectors of society and all corners of the globe presented a unified front, calling on all stakeholders to stop wasting time and start implementing to meet science-based climate targets. It was a defiant response to the so-called ESG backlash that made headlines over the past year, with business leaders and policymakers alike pointing to the cost to companies and countries of not jumping on the renewable energy train with both feet.
Ramon Mendez Galain, executive director of Asociación Ivy, threw this into stark relief when he observed that those who are not investing in renewables are simply deciding whether or not they want to be a part of the 21st-century economy. “Renewables are sexy,” he added with a grin. Galain called for a new narrative that emphasizes the opportunities in renewable energy and the importance of removing barriers to growing renewables rather than continuing to focus solely on phasing out fossil fuels — a shift he insists will naturally lead to decreased reliance on them.
Gregory Carli, Global Advisory Leader for Sustainability, Resilience & ESG at GHD, at Climate Week NYC.
Meanwhile, Gregory Carli, Global Advisory Leader for Sustainability, Resilience & ESG at GHD, pointed to a recent study that found 79 per cent of executives believe a moderate to significant gap exists between what they are trying to achieve with sustainability and what has been implemented. He put it plainly, saying that those who fail to implement sustainability strategies risk being left behind in the next five to ten years. To address this gap, Gregory advised that organizations should focus on incremental progress toward sustainability goals rather than becoming overly fixated on outcomes. Setting targets is essential for motivation and discipline.
Sarah E. Thompson, managing director and head of Sustainable Finance at Royal Bank of Canada Capital Markets, spoke to working with both corporate clients and institutional investor clients in Canada on ESG issues. She pointed to Canada’s leadership in nuclear energy, charting the evolution in green bonds for nuclear, once excluded by ESG-minded investors but now seen as a pragmatic alternative to fossil fuels, although far from the only one.
Across other events, the Canada Infrastructure Bank received regular lip service, with speakers citing it as a compelling example of Canada’s ambitious efforts to derisk energy transition projects. Ushering in a just transition to clean energy in Canada means more than just combatting climate change — although a worthy cause on its own — it stands to be a significant job creator. The sustainability mindset is also increasingly driving innovation, supported by evolving economics that favor new approaches.
If the first two days of Climate Week NYC made anything abundantly clear, it is that ESG is not dead. Investor and customer interest isn’t going anywhere, and neither is this group of stubborn climate optimists.
Colleen Connors is the global sustainability communications lead for GHD. Stay tuned for further highlights from Environment Journal’s correspondent at Climate Week NYC.
