Is Corporate India to be blamed for recent climate-induced disasters?
This is an edgy query and can lead to a series of furious debates. People from all walks of life will comment on whether corporate India is or is not responsible/partly responsible for the tragedy that has been continuously striking our country.
But that dear reader, is not my intent in posing the question. Ever since the tragedy struck India, I have noticed reactions: 1. Measured 2. Passionate from those affected 3. Dispassionate –corporate India and the layman and 4. Ugly: The politicians.
While I do not expect much from the politicians who are busy playing dirty in the Parliament and the state assembly, it is the common people (who are paying taxes for better infrastructure and amenities) who are the first on the field during rescue operations. Why do local corporates do not participate?
Climate change, respected employers also impacts you! If your factory or office is in a vulnerable terrain, nature’s fury will not exclude you.
I read sustainability, ESG, and BRSR reports in which you, dear corporate detail spending crores of rupees on CSR projects. That is a blessing for India for the initiatives and the impact (yes because you measure the matrix) are promising. Contextually, even if each corporate adopts one of the vulnerable areas I believe that climate change can be prevented to a large extent.
There are siloes of examples of how various corporate entities have adopted villages or clusters of rural areas and are working with the local community in fields such as health, education, infrastructure, and employment. We just need to include ENVIRONMENT and CLIMATE in this repository.
What next?
Bringing everyone to agree on Climate mitigation is crucial. A coordinated effort is required to stop the initiatives in silos and convert them into a collective effort.
It also means including morality as a KPI of your business and especially an essential matrix of ESG reports. Morality, Purpose, and Profit can go hand in hand. This is the need of the hour: SAVE the PLANET, SAVE HUMANITY, HELP PREVENT CLIMATE CHANGE.
Large companies in each domain or sector have ample knowledge of the terrain, the topological factors, and numerous studies by local experts to understand the climatic impact of the project. The impact of large-scale construction on the area or the ecology, deforestation is turning its head toward us. We are feeling the heat as climate-induced heat strokes increase.
Politicians will provide you with the environmental clearance for projects. Will your greed for profits allow you to trample over the environmental issues and crush the last chance to conserve/save Mother Earth?
As an example, I am touching upon the construction sector. Experts have pointed out the direct correlation between unscientific developments in ecology and climate incidents. The Mumbai flooding, and recent Himalayan and Kerala tragedies are a case in point.
Cartelization or contracts are being thrown to cartels and blacklisted companies. This has to stop. The winner may be the lowest bidder, but is the company qualified for the job? Does it have the requisite expertise and clearance to take on the project?
Our take:
And I am sure, accountability and ownership of this scale will benefit not just the brand involved but also involve the stakeholders and community at large. For sure, it will prevent displacement and migration and provide employment opportunities.
By no means is WriteCanvas anti-industrialization. We are an enterprise and can very much relate with the teething troubles of a new project, or the cost a business has to bear to bag a new one.
We do appreciate the contribution of Corporate India in propelling India’s economy and the growth of our country across sectors.
We are of the view that a practical approach involves involving all stakeholders, including companies, investments, technology, and policy, to not only prevent climate disasters but also predict potential ones, thereby reducing their impact.
Remember, we have failed to limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees of the pre-industrial level, accepting the breach of the 2 degrees threshold of the Paris Agreement.
The fact remains that any growth has to be inclusive, sustainable, and responsible.