How can we put diversity and inclusion at the heart of climate action to spread the benefits and burdens fairly?

It’s important to set targets and track them in terms of what changes we seek to make on climate change and diversity and inclusion. We worked on this guide in 2021 with CDKN on setting targets around gender. Advancing gender equality and climate action: A practical guide to setting targets and monitoring progress.

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Any company talking about intersectionality in this space would be one to watch in my opinion. I saw a great quote on Instagram which said - we need to move from the politics of ‘people who look like me’ to the politics of ‘people who are structurally positioned like me’. This is critical to consider as businesses look to include more vulnerable voices and ensure a just transition.

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I love that this discussion has already surfaced a good selection of the various groups at risk from climate change and also at risk of not having access, resources, power, etc. to adapt under the current environment. Women, BIPOC, people in poverty, many in the global south – I would add children, the disabled, the elderly… who are we missing?

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Key question from me - how can we get private sector engagement in the most vulnerable countries? Anyone got any great examples? @rjoshi? By 2030 26% of the world’s population will live in fragile states. We know that climate finance for adaptation is not reaching the most vulnerable. The majority of the most climate vulnerable countries received less than $20 per person per year in climate change adaptation financing (2010–2017). The private sector aren’t likely to be able to be part of the solution in these countries but perhaps there are things we can start to shift?

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Clicking through to the guide now, but curious if anyone is doing a good job at this yet in your opinion? I’m not aware of any leaders at measuring these types of intersectional targets yet.

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The 1619 Project and Nikole Hannah-Jones are incredibly influential on the best thinking in this space!

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Here at the TASC Platform, we’re embedded in the ‘International Geneva’ community of international organizations, and have been hearing about an interesting connection through the human rights community – workers within the supply chains of products and technologies that are part of the green transition. Often, these involve e.g. mining and rare metals, where increasing demand is putting pressure on labour conditions.

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LGBTQIA+, Indigenous/ First Nations communities…

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Many multinational corporations are looking deeper into their supply chains – I think working backward from the most vulnerable countries into the corporations that are reliant on those regions in their business would be a place to start.

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We work with companies and other stakeholders to centre grassroots groups in climate solutions. So, we might work with an entity that channels their philanthropic giving through us, alternatively we could advise an entity on how to ensure that locally-led and diverse solutions and incorporated in their giving strategies and decision-making through collaborative learning.

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Would add Indigenous groups and those with indigenous knowledge.

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Hi everyone, I am Joanna Romero from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank. I had started a new role within IFC tasked to build a new work program on climate and gender within our Gender & Economic Inclusion Group

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Apologies - I’ve learnt a new acronym - BIPOC Black, Indigenous, (and) People of Color and see tht Indigenous is included!

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yes and looking where all those ‘transition minerals’ are located to

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Being part of a university, we’ve also been working with young people on the verge, or newly entered into the workforce. The general feeling is a struggle to be heard and engage in dialogue on this subject in a meaningful way.

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I would also point to the massive interest in climate adaptation finance worldwide – venture capital is flowing to climate tech in general, and resilience in particular, and this is typically particularly focused on the developing world. Check out Global Adaptation and Resilience Investment (GARI) working group – from their site: a private sector, private investor-led initiative that was announced at Paris COP21 in conjunction with the UN Secretary General’s Climate Resilience Initiative. The working group brings together private and public sector investors, bankers, lenders and other stakeholders to discuss critical issues at the intersection of climate adaptation and resilience and investment with the objective of helping to assess, mobilize and catalyze action and investment. GARI aims to provide education, research and resources to build awareness and capacity in the private sector towards the mission of catalyzing investment in resilience.

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Ok a great first round - now lets look into qu 2 What are the challenges of identifying peoples different vulnerabilities to climate change across the value chain and how can business ensure that the burdens and benefits of climate change are more fairly shared?

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Apologies for using U.S.-centric acronyms!! :slight_smile:

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Vulnerabilities to climate change can be very wide-ranging and complex in the case of agri-commodities, which is IDH’s focus. They are influenced by where the crop is grown, country and specific region, what the market price for the commodity is, who the decision maker is, and state support available to those impacted. For example, female farmers growing cotton in arid regions of India currently experiencing a heatwave, will have completely different climate risk exposure than a male Australian cotton farmer trying to cope with forest fires and lack of rain. This diversity of vulnerabilities can make it difficult for companies to identify the specific stakeholder groups to take into account when considering how to share the burdens and benefits of climate change.

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The simple answer to understanding where the opportunities are for business to ensure that climate change is more equitably experienced is: look to your core business, where your company spends its money, and you’ll often find the opportunities. It’s obviously more complex than that, but that’s a starting place.

Every sector and company has unique sustainability issues that are material to business – as well as having unique impacts on communities. In addition, many frontline communities are being impacted by climate change in ways that are non-linear, worsening, and hard to predict. This creates a complex impact ecosystem. Only by asking the actual communities in question about their pain points and opportunities can an organization know precisely how to intervene in the system. A company may find its stakeholders look to the company for much different support than the company thinks it should give (in quantity, quality, or type). Test your hypotheses by asking the people what it is they need.

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