What do the outcomes of COP27 mean for you?

This year’s COP in Sharm el-Sheikh has received mixed reviews. The key takeaway was a commitment to create a long-awaited ‘loss and damage’ mechanism, which will compensate small nations and developing countries for the impacts of climate change they have not been responsible for. Elsewhere, outcomes were lacklustre. There was weak progress on the global commitment to keep temperature increases below 1.5C, and the use of fossil fuels looks set to continue with the final agreement only nodding towards phasing out coal power and fossil fuel subsidies.

Beyond the headlines, however, there were pockets of action that – while not as momentous as say, a ban on fossil fuels – will nonetheless contribute to slow and steady progress towards a greener and more equitable world. Here’s how they stand to affect the average consumer.

Changing products

Companies will play an important role in helping countries achieve their climate targets – and it makes good business sense for them to be more sustainable, too. Cost-savings, resilience and improved consumer reputation are just some of the ways companies stand to benefit from more sustainable practices.

As such, we’ll see companies switching up the way they do things, whether that’s by reformulating products to use more sustainable ingredients or swapping to different types of packaging.

As Ignacio Gavilan, sustainability director at The Consumer Goods Forum, tells Ocki: “Businesses need to act decisively to respond to the urgent needs of people and planet. Everyone must step up.

“For consumer goods brands, that includes being clear how products are being reformulated to ensure lower environmental impact, reporting openly on progress to tackle deforestation, and working to ensure that plastic never becomes waste. Consumers, investors and employees are rewarding businesses who do the right thing. If businesses fail to act, they will get left behind.”

A focus on green finance

Green finance wasn’t a central theme of COP this year, but the loss and damage narrative meant that financial institutions didn’t escape scrutiny. Climate finance – and in particular, directing funding for adaptation to developing countries – needs to be scaled up quickly, and banks need to make more sustainable decisions about the way they invest their money.

While nothing was set in stone, it’s clear that the world’s largest financial institutions cannot continue investing in fossil fuels, deforestation and other activities damaging the planet. As such, we’ll likely see our banks making a shift towards greener initiatives, with more ‘ethical’ personal finance products available and a greater choice in pension funds. Learn more about the way your money impacts the planet here.     

A crackdown on greenwashing

COP is now a firm fixture in the diary for most world leaders and those that don’t make it a priority will be judged – UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, for example, faced a massive backlash when he announced his original plan to bypass the event. The same holds true for corporations. Like the leaders attending COP, businesses are expected to be present, transparent and proactive in the climate conversation.

This means an end to greenwashing. Stakeholders – from employees and investors to consumers – will no longer tolerate unsubstantiated green claims and embellished sustainability stories. COP and its activities show that the climate crisis is a central global focus now, and companies caught taking liberties with their messaging will face significant consequences, whether that’s through financial penalties or irrevocable reputational damage. Learn more about greenwashing – and measures to tackle it – here.  

More public education on climate change

COP27 saw the creation of a four-year Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) plan which covers six key areas for public engagement: public awareness; education; training; access to information; participation and international cooperation.

States are already legally obliged to implement many of the elements of ACE, but the new plan aims to really reinforce how important it is to get the general public on board with climate activities. This means we’ll see more awareness campaigns on sustainable lifestyles and consumer behaviour. Indeed, a report from the UK’s House of Lords recently found that sustainable behaviours could help slash up to two-thirds of all the emissions we need to reduce in order to stay on track for 1.5C – indicating that every action, no matter how small, does make a difference.