Today’s ESG Updates
- Scientists Build Climate ‘Time Machine’ in the Amazon: Ahead of COP30, Brazil and the UK launched the AmazonFACE project to study how increased carbon levels affect rainforest ecosystems.
- Bill Gates Urges Balanced Approach to Climate Change: In a new memo, Gates called for reducing climate “alarmism,” focusing instead on lowering clean energy costs and improving global human welfare.
- EU Eyes €5 Billion Tech Fund for Homegrown Innovation: The European Commission is in talks with top investors across Europe to create a multi-billion-euro fund supporting critical technology growth.
- Norway Wins Arctic Oil Lawsuit in Human Rights Court: The ECHR ruled against activists claiming Norway’s Arctic drilling violated their rights, upholding previous national court decisions.
Scientists in the Amazon use climate “time machine” to predict the effects of increased CO2
Ahead of the UN’s COP30 summit in Brazil, the country has invested in a “time machine” to gauge the Amazon Rainforest’s reaction to climate change. The AmazonFACE project has constructed six steel towers outside the country’s largest Amazonian city, Manaus. Each of these towers was built around clusters of about 50 to 70 mature trees. Scientists will introduce increasing levels of carbon dioxide into three of the six towers, with the remaining three acting as control samples. The project, backed by the governments of Brazil and the UK, aims to assess the effects of elevated carbon dioxide levels on plant life. FACE, short for Free-Air CO2 Enrichment, has conducted similar experiments worldwide.
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Further reading: Scientists run climate ‘time machine’ in Amazon as Brazil preps for COP30
Bill Gates shares updated views on climate change
In a memo published Tuesday by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, the billionaire called on business owners and governments to soften the “alarmism” approach to climate change. He wrote, “Although climate change will have serious consequences, particularly for people in the poorest countries, it will not lead to humanity’s demise.” He encouraged investments to lower clean energy prices and reduce pollution in the agricultural, transportation, and manufacturing sectors. In the memo, he urged the world to shift away from reducing greenhouse gas emissions and instead focus on human welfare and improving people’s lives worldwide. Corporations can use ESG solutions to invest in climate strategies that positively impact humanity.
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Further reading: Bill Gates Says Climate Change ‘Will Not Lead to Humanity’s Demise’
Klimado – Navigating climate complexity just got easier. Klimado offers a user-friendly platform for tracking local and global environmental shifts, making it an essential tool for climate-aware individuals and organizations.
European Commission to speak with investors about potential €5 billion tech fund
The European Commission plans to meet with Europe’s top investors to discuss beginning a technology investment fund. The invited investors include Italian Intesa Sanpaolo, Spanish CriteriaCaixa and Santander, Danish Novo Holdings, the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, Swedish Wallenberg Investments, Dutch pension fund APG Asset Management, and Polish Development Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego. Depending on how much these investors are willing to contribute, the fund could range from €3 to €5 billion. The fund will focus on critical technology in Europe, including artificial intelligence, clean energy, medical technologies, and more. The tech fund, scheduled to launch in April, aims to help companies struggling to scale up in Europe. Companies committed to clean and critical technologies should consider ESG solutions for guidance.
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Further reading: Commission courts top investors for up to €5B tech fund
Norway wins in court over Arctic oil exploration lawsuit
The European Court of Human Rights ruled against a group of young activists claiming that Norway’s Arctic oil exploration was negatively impacting the climate and their futures. Norway produces 4 million barrels of oil per day, making it the largest oil and gas producer in Western Europe. In 2016, the Norwegian government awarded 10 exploration licenses in the Arctic Barents Sea to allow for further drilling. The six young activists were joined by Greenpeace and Young Friends of the Earth in filing the lawsuit in 2022, claiming that the exploration licenses endangered the environment and caused “climate anxiety.” A statement released by the court said, “The European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been no violation.” The verdict comes after three similar lawsuits in Norway also rejected the activists’ claims.
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Further reading: Europe’s top rights court rejects climate challenge against Norway’s oil
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of impakter.com — Cover Photo Credit: CRYSTAL MIRALLEGRO
