Neil Yeoh’s Post

❌ Sustainability should not be treated solely as a 'compliance' or 'project' activity. Instead data & evidence shows it should 'embedded' so we can achieve net-zero, and secure our future According to a 2024 Morgan Report report (🔗 in comments) which surveyed >300 global private & public companies with decision making responsibilities on sustainability matters found: - 85% consider sustainability to be a value creation opportunity - 92% expect climate change to impact their business by 2050 BUT... - 70% cite high investment needs as a top barrier to delivering their sustainability strategy - Only half report that sustainability factors into key business decisions Why? Most sustainability teams work in SILOES checking off a list of compliance and project activities The key to a net-zero & sustainable business future is EMBEDDING sustainability, where it is integrated across every business unit, in core functions and workflows To do this we will need an entire workforce to have range of green skills from broad climate fluency, general business knowledge, to specialized technical skills + organizational transformation 💬 What is your opinion on our global efforts to net-zero & beyond? Are they being treated as a compliance, project, or embedding activity? Share your thoughts in the comments below ~~~ If interested, we're publishing a whitepaper on workforce upskilling, skills identification & recruiting in Sept for organizations to achieve embedded sustainability 🔗 sign-up for early access https://bit.ly/45DA1Vs

GHG accounting won't save our planet. In fact, it can allow business as usual without change In a recently published interview with Project Frame (🔗 in comments) I explain the need for measuring 'emissions reduction potential' This practice is crucial to evaluate the potential avoided emissions emerging solutions could have at commercial scale e.g. think evaluating new lab-scale biomaterials vs. commercial plastic e.g. think evaluating new batteries against lithium ion This practice requires a combination of: - standardized methodology & adoption, which Project Frame (initiative of Prime Coalition) is working on - adapting life cycle assessment modeling approaches - updated emission factors capturing emerging processes & materials - anticipated market penetration, displacement & trends In fact we've built screening comparative LCA models on behalf of investors, startups and buyers of climate tech to address these issues It's not easy, but important to balance current vs. future solutions to our climate crisis 💬 What are your thoughts? Should focus on our current or future climate solutions? or both? This will guide where our focus around GHG accounting goes ~~~ If interested, read more in the article & the methodology document in the comments below I was part of the working group last year, evaluating LCA tools to help climate investors

After months of hard work, I finally get to welcome these 184 OnePointFive (opf.degree) Academy members from 37 countries into our largest & most diverse cohort, who start TODAY! Here's more about them.. 👩🎓 64% of our participants identify as female, advocating for women in sustainability 👨👩👧👦 71% represent diverse racial & ethnic backgrounds, including Asians, Black or African Americans, Hispanic or Latino backgrounds 🌎 Our members come from 37 countries across all continents, including: Australia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Grenada, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, The United States and Zimbabwe 🎓 We've also prioritized merit- & needs-based scholarships to applicants from the Global South and the unemployed This is because studies that show that: - Those from diverse backgrounds are better stewards of our planet, but lack empowerment through skills training in many countries - The Global South is impacted most by climate change, but lack accessibility to attaining green skills - Green skills attainment for the unemployed or career transitioners can make all the difference to catalyze their careers in sustainability Thank you (to my LinkedIn community here) for all the support you've given, as my team and I make steps towards our commitment to train & activate 100,000 sustainability professionals for 2030 #OPF100k -- bridging the 2x green skills & talent gap in our workforce of the future for climate action ~~~ If you're interested in joining our next cohort starting in October, learn more & apply via https://lnkd.in/er5HJeE2

❓Did you know a survey of 5,000 C-Suite execs shows we're spending more on sustainability reporting than innovation? Here's the 3 barriers we must overcome 1) Reaching reporting targets, but not investing in sustainable innovation Currently spending on sustainability reporting exceeds spending on sustainability innovation by 43% Many organizations treat sustainability as an accounting or reporting exercise, rather than business transformation 2) Reporting on return on sustainable investment seems harder in practice Organizations who have embedded sustainability are 52% more likely to outperform peers on profitability, with 16% higher revenue growth But, 6 in 10 executives have to make trade-offs between financial and sustainable outcomes, and only 31 % report on sustainable operational improvements 3) Demonstrating business benefits essential for sustainable investments 53% of organizations that embed sustainability say that business benefits are essential for justifying sustainability investment Only 17% say meeting sustainability objectives is in itself is sufficient to justify investments So how do we address these barriers? Well imo organizations should.. - embed sustainability into its business operations so it's synonymous to "do well by doing good" -shift mindsets from compliance reporting to evaluation of climate risks & opportunities for sustainable operations - build financial and environmental models to calculate & communicate return on investment & climate impacts 💬 What is your reaction to the survey data above? Is it suprising, or expected? Let me know in the comments below, where I've also included a link to the original report ~~~ If you're interest in topics like these, sign-up to our monthly newsletter to get smarter about climate 🔗 https://bit.ly/4eyRXVr

❓Climate change poses two major financial risks to organizations, but there is one BIG set of opportunities 1. Physical climate risks are the potential of damage or destruction of physical assets by extreme weather events & climate change These risks include: - Chronic physical risks from droughts, sea-level rise due to long-term shifts in weather patterns - Acute physical risks from extreme weather events such as hurricanes, floods, or wildfires 📉 The potential financial impacts of physical risks can include: - disruptions to production, operations, or supply chain - physical damage to assets or rising insurance costs - changes in resource & inputs prices - workforce disruptions due to health, safety, absentees 2) Transition climate risks are business risks related to the transition away from fossil fuels and to a low-carbon economy These risks include: - Transition risks from policy & legal (e.g. reporting obligations), technology (e.g. lack of clean tech investments), market (e.g. changing customer demand), and reputation (e.g. shifting consumer sentiment) 📉 The potential financial impacts of transition risks include: - Increased cost of compliance, insurance premiums & fines - Higher costs to adopt new practices & processes - Reduced demand for products & services - Higher production costs due to changing input prices - Lower employee retention But there are also climate opportunities from mitigating and adapting to climate change, by "embedding sustainability" into organizational strategy ✅ Theses opportunities include: - Resource efficiency - e.g. reduced operating costs - Energy sources - e.g. reduced exposure to high fossil fuel prices - Products & services - e.g. increased demand for low carbon products - Markets - e.g. access to new & emerging markets - Resilience - e.g. increased reliability of supply chain & operations In summary, no organization today can doubt the risks that climate change poses But rather for mass action we need to convince organizations of the opportunities in climate action 💬 What are your thoughts on climate risks & opportunities? let me know in the comments below 👋 React, repost or save to come back to this later as a reference ~~~ If you want to learn more, sign up to our newsletter to get smarter about climate 🔗 https://bit.ly/4eyRXVr

"Fossil fuels have given us prosperity, [but] it's also causing unbelievable damage and we need change," Chris Heysel Last week, we hosted South Pole North America Lead, Canadian entrepreneur & outdoor enthusiast, Chris with our OnePointFive (opf.degree) Academy & Community It was an inspiring keynote filled with insights, hot takes, and tangible advice for sustainability professionals Here were 3 key takeaways for you 1) "Individual actions are important, but the scale of impact through corporate sustainability decisions can be far greater" Both types of action are necessary & complementary, but you can have outsized impact in a sustainability career if you have right skills This reminds me of how BP marketed the term "carbon footprint" to get us to focus on our individual versus their enormous footprints We need more professionals with green skill competencies to call *BS* on organizations greenwashing, and help guide proper action 2) "Sustainability is really broad, so narrow down your focus.. [know] the subject material" & what you want to work on Learning 'green skills' like GHG accounting & LCA modeling is one thing, but you will need to pair this knowledge with your existing skills Identify your transferrable skills; understand industry climate interventions; and get specific with what you want to work on Ask yourself.. "Do you love numbers & data? Are you a change management experts? Project manager? Pair these transferable skills with your knowledge of an industry" 3) "Climate risk is getting a lot more attention" Understanding not just your business' impacts on the world, but the world's potential impact on your business, is becoming increasingly important Investors want to know what the financial implications of climate risks are, and this is forcing organizations - that otherwise wouldn't care - to act Alongside increasing regulations in the EU, UK, U.S. influencing other parts of the world, we'll need a future workforce (now) with skills to help organizations sustainably grow without destroying the planet 💬 What are you thoughts / comments on the above? Let me know in the comments below. ~~~ If you want to get more industry expert takeaways like these, sign-up to our monthly newsletter 🔗 https://bit.ly/4eyRXVr

This was unseemingly one of the most meaningful moments of the year on stage at NEXUS Global Summit yesterday It wasn't the TED-like stage, lights, or atmosphere that made it memorable (..or that Selena Gomez spoke on the same stage just earlier) It was having the opportunity to listen, learn, and hold space to uplift others, which made it meaningful It taught me that sometimes the greatest gift is what you can give to and learn from others These are the gifts that climate advocates & nonprofit leaders Tishiko King & Sage Lenier gave, which I'm sharing with you From Tish.. - The Torres Strait Islands are 150 islands off the north east of Australia, with 18 habited islands, and several thousand people - These islands are close to sea-level, have already experience coastal erosion of up to 500m (~1640ft) on some islands - The Australian government promised sea-walls, but after ~30yrs, asked the Torres Strait people to relocate - Australia is one of the highest GHG emitters per capita in the globe, and should take responsibility to support its First Nation people - Tish supported a coalition that went up to the UN-level, and won a legal battle requiring Australia to act - But we need more people aware of & supporting this campaign around the "Torres Strait 8", learn more 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ex3NeErD From Sage.. - In 2018, at 19 years old at UC Berkeley, Sage realized that there very little climate-related education available for everyday students - She launched a campaign & built curriculum which has taught >2k Gen Zers with the education needed to become climate solutionists - Sage's work is more important today as Gen Z will make up 30% of the workforce by 2030; and only 1 in 10 Gen Zers have access to green skills - Her nonprofit Sustainable & Just Future recently launched - She has an upcoming campaign to get climate curriculum into US universities, and is launching an upcoming train-the-trainer fellowship 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eZt8WP2A During the 18 mins on stage, I didn't mention a word about OnePointFive (opf.degree) and I'm proud of myself Today wasn't about me, it was about the work of Sage & Tish I hope you learned something & got a spark of inspiration today from reading about the important work of these two individuals

We've got the messaging wrong. Rather than 'climate change' we should call it 'atmospheric cancer' Imagining 'greenhouse gases' spreading doesn't paint a picture of urgency Imagining 'atmospheric cancer' spreading does We have a communications problem when it comes to getting the masses to truly grapple with the extent of the problem Terms like carbon footprint, markets, nature-based, engineered removals, etc. -- may be important for those who already care But for those who aren't bought in, complex terms becomes a barrier to understanding & mass engagement We need to explain it so that a 5 year old can understand & care about it If anyone I love has cancer I'd be there in a heartbeat to do all I can Well, we're currently living in a world in its early- (to late-) stages of cancer When I think about this way, it really gets me up to do something about it