Three positive signs from COP29
COP29, the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference, is the latest big gathering of global leaders and experts working to address the climate crisis.
This year’s summit in Azerbaijan is coming to a close. It hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing, but we’re seeing encouraging moves to lay foundations for more global renewable energy, low-impact production, and collaboration across national borders.
Here at Naked Sprout, we’re always tuned in to the conference; so many of the decisions made there impact the climate, our work, and our community as a sustainable business.
Here are three key takeaways from COP29 that resonate with us at Naked Sprout.
Stronger commitments to climate action (but more is needed!)
One of the standout positives at COP29 has been the commitment from several countries to reduce carbon emissions more aggressively. The UK pledged to cut emissions by at least 81% by 2035, which is a huge goal.
We’re cheering on these moves because they match the science-backed targets we’re also working toward at Naked Sprout. From the beginning, we’ve focused on reducing emissions throughout our entire production process rather than offsetting, so we’re thrilled to see our government setting their sights high.
But making announcements won’t solve the climate crisis - countries need to back up these promises with solid actions. One way to do this is to put much more effort into the growth of renewable energy at home, and for richer nations to do a lot more to support the growth of renewable energy in the developing countries currently suffering the worst effects of the climate crisis.
This brings us to the next point…
More renewable energy
Renewable energy has been front and centre at COP29; great news for the planet and all of us who live on it. For global societies to grow and to flourish we need much better sources of energy.
We’ve seen the impact of switching to renewable energy when we look at the results of our own Life Cycle Assessment for our eco toilet roll. All our tissue products are made at our fantastic B Corp tissue mill in Spain, in a process powered by locally renewable biofuels and onsite solar, wind, and hydroelectric generators. This setup helps us keep our emissions lower than other eco tissue brands while producing high-quality, eco-friendly tissue products for the UK market.
But as a toilet supplier in the UK, what we’d love to see is a bigger commitment to renewable energy here at home. When we started Naked Sprout we spoke to several large UK tissue mills and were dismayed to find that none were set up to produce tissue products without fossil fuels.
So there’s lots of room to improve here! Renewables should be at the heart of our climate strategy - they’re key to cutting emissions, future-proofing industries, and making our economy more resilient.
The power of international collaboration
As we write this, delegates from the UK and Brazil are being brought in to try to mediate a crisis at the summit.
It has been agreed in principle that the wealthiest nations need to support efforts to tackle the worst effects of the climate crisis - currently being suffered by the countries that are least responsible for causing it. But with political brinkmanship, bickering, and time-wasting tactics in effect, the time to reach an actual settlement is running out.
We are watching these talks with hope for a breakthrough - the climate crisis is a global challenge and the only way to tackle it will be to collaborate across borders.
Collaboration is a huge part of our story at Naked Sprout. Our partnership with our Spanish tissue mill allows us to produce bamboo and recycled toilet paper, facial tissues, and paper towels with reduced emissions, no plastic, and no harsh chemicals. Working across borders like this shows us every day that international partnerships are not only possible but incredibly powerful.
This year’s summit also saw progress toward creating a global carbon trading framework, which would allow countries to trade carbon credits to help meet their climate goals. We have mixed feelings about this. “Carbon credits” means offsetting, and offsetting isn’t going to solve the climate crisis.
But we're staying hopeful that agreements like this will at least provide a framework for countries to work together on more meaningful research and innovation to reduce fossil fuels, rather than offset them.
Conclusion
As COP29 comes to a close we salute the energy, expertise, and goodwill that lives in the global community of climate experts and non-profits pushing tirelessly for change. Political manoeuvring and finger-pointing can only last so long. Fossil fuels are changing our climate, and they’re going to run out. Sooner or later we will need to find solutions.
The mad thing is we already know what most of these solutions will be. Getting to a stage where we are less reliant on fossil fuels, using more renewable energy, and collaborating more with our neighbours is possible right now, not at some distant point in the future. At Naked Sprout we are proud to embrace these changes, and we know our customers feel the same way.
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