2024年平衡的世界：在地缘政治挑战中加速可持续发展

A World in Balance 2024: Accelerating Sustainability Amidst Geopolitical Challenges

Executive Summary: In the third edition of the A world in balance sustainability series, the report examines the progress organizations have made in environmental and social sustainability over the past three years and identifies the drivers and challenges they face. Since 2022, organizations have shown significant progress, with a 22 percentage point increase in the adoption of sustainable practices and initiatives. Key areas of improvement include:

• Circularity: 72% of executives now consider recycling a core aspect of manufacturing, up from 53% in 2022.
• Sustainable Design: 69% are redesigning products to remove fossil fuel feedstocks, up from 47% in 2022.
• Measurement and Data Sharing: 71% measure industrial process energy consumption, up from 43% in 2022.
• Water Stewardship: 75% have implemented water stewardship programs, up from 55% in 2022.
• Biodiversity: 66% invest in natural habitat conservation, up from 43% in 2022.
• Social Sustainability: 61% use an external third party to disclose their social impact, up from 49% in 2022.
• Sustainability Education and Training: 73% train employees on sustaining the environment, up from 52% in 2022.

Regulations have played a crucial role in driving sustainability efforts, with three-quarters of executives believing that regulation is necessary to achieve global climate goals. However, many organizations are unprepared for upcoming regulations like the CSRD. Specifically, only 38% of organizations are prepared to report Scope 3 downstream emissions in 2025, and 56% are prepared for Scope 3 upstream emissions.

Despite these advancements, geopolitical dynamics pose a challenge. Two-thirds of executives view climate tech as crucial for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and 69% agree that data and digital technologies will accelerate climate tech adoption. However, they must navigate high costs, skills shortages, and regulatory uncertainty.

Key Findings:

• Geopolitical Impact: Most executives (65%) believe current geopolitical dynamics are driving a slowdown in sustainability investments. Additionally, 69% are concerned about the impact of the uncertain political environment on their sustainability investments.
• Consumer Skepticism: 52% of consumers globally believe organizations are greenwashing their sustainability initiatives, up from 33% in 2023. Consumers expect corporations to play a larger role in reducing GHG emissions and demand greater transparency and accountability.

Recommendations:

To accelerate sustainability transformation and drive lasting impact, organizations should:

• Prepare for regulatory changes and geopolitical uncertainties.
• Elevate water and biodiversity as key strategic priorities.
• Prioritize customer-centric sustainability strategies.
• Embed circularity in the full value chain.
• Invest in climate tech solutions and digital technologies.
• Ensure sustainability goals are an enterprise-wide focus.

Conclusion:

This report provides valuable insights into important sustainability trends for the global corporate sector, offering recommendations to help Chief Sustainability Officers (CSOs) and the broader C-suite accelerate their sustainability journeys. The report is based on original findings from a comprehensive industry survey of 2,152 senior executives from 727 leading organizations across 13 countries with annual revenue above $1 billion.