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MARKET FOR MORALS: CLIMATE CHANGE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES

Naeem Ashraf


INDUSTRY :

AREA : Business Ethics

ORGANIZATION :

LENGTH : 23

LUMS No : 24-002-2016-2

PUBLICATION YEAR : 2016

DESCRIPTION

KEYWORDS:

CDM, carbon offset markets, Pakistan, climate change, global accords


DESCRIPTION:

Climate change has come to the forefront as a major global phenomenon. Uncontrolled human-induced gasses and emission of greenhouse gasses have led to atmospheric concentrations that have set the globe towards patterns of progressive warming. If left unchecked, human and natural systems will be at high risk of unforeseen and extreme deterioration. The realisation of the global nature of the problem has brought multiple initiatives to combat climate change into play, with the most prominent and relatively successful to date being the Kyoto Protocol (1997) under the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change. The protocol came into effect in 2005 and brought with it flexible market-based mechanisms for the trading and offsetting of carbon credits and allowances to incentivise green investment and ease the cost of compliance for participating countries; the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). A number of Pakistani firms have sought to benefit from the international carbon offset market and initiated projects under the CDM umbrella for various reasons. The resulting benefits they accrued depend largely on their institutional context and complementary resources. While the Kyoto Protocol and CDM have enjoyed mixed success in binding participating organisations and easing their drive to meet emission reduction targets, its current participatory rate and the international market-based mechanism remains extremely uncertain and under heavy scrutiny of international observers. Ongoing climate change negotiations and forthcoming global action will require organisations to remain on their toes in the face of regulation limiting emissions. The market leaders of tomorrow might as well be organisations who have been able to generate competitive advantages through their efforts to comply with climate change regulation and reduce emissions.


LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Review the history of climate change and its recognition as a major threat to the global and human system • Review and evaluate the effectiveness of global accords (Kyoto Protocol) and market-based mechanisms (CDM) in countering climate change • Review the involvement of Pakistani organisations in the CDM • Review the current status of CDM and carbon offset markets • Understand some of the criticisms surrounding CDM and carbon offset markets


SUBJECTS COVERED:

Business Ethics, Climate, Corporate Social Responsibilty, Brand Positioning