Council proposes a new agenda for 2050 with contributions from companies for a more just, resilient and sustainable society
By Marina Grossi
Aerial view of a fire in a forest reserve in the municipality of Novo Progresso, Pará. In July 2020, more than 90 businesspeople signed a document reaffirming the need to reconcile production with environmental preservation. Photo by Carl Souza/AFP
(*) With Marcos Bicudo
The year was 1997: five years after Eco-92, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro, a group of Brazilian businesspeople were already aware of the changes and opportunities that the still embryonic sustainability movement would bring. From this group and this intention was born the Brazilian Business Council for Sustainable Development (CEBDS), whose objective is to promote sustainable development through collaboration with governments and civil society, in addition to disseminating concepts, practices and tools that help guide companies on this journey.
In Brazil, we represent the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) network, which has almost 60 national and regional advisors in 36 countries, in addition to 200 business groups operating on all continents.
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Over the past 24 years, the world has changed, society has transformed, and sustainability has become more than just an imperative for business success. It is no longer enough to mitigate negative impacts on social and environmental issues: the businesses that will thrive in this new century are those that produce positive impacts and regenerate ecosystems.
In 1997, the world took its first steps towards resolving climate change issues with the signing of the Kyoto Protocol, an agreement that established targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions for developed countries. Today, there is scientific consensus that global warming is aggravated by human activity on Earth and that all countries, rich and developing, must do their part to prevent global temperatures from rising above 1.5°C. Almost 200 countries have signed the Paris Agreement and are committed to efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
If the private sector used to be a supporting actor in actions and decisions on sustainable development, today it is part of the solution – whether in the adoption of clean technologies and investment in renewable energy sources, or in advocacy for governments to take more robust measures in the socio-environmental sphere. At CEBDS, we currently bring together 60 of the largest business groups in the country, with revenues equivalent to 45% of the GDP and responsible for generating more than one million direct jobs.
This group is leading important actions, such as the statement we released on July 7 of last year, on behalf of more than 90 signatory CEOs and important associations from the agribusiness, industry and forestry sectors, reinforcing that it is possible to reconcile production with environmental preservation. The Brazilian private sector understands that combating illegal deforestation, especially in the Amazon biome, is a sine qua non condition for Brazil to remain competitive in the markets and to be part of important trade agreements. The document, addressed to the Three Powers, expresses the intention of Brazilian companies to contribute to Brazil achieving the goal of zero deforestation, in addition to demanding more command and control actions from the government. There is a consensus among CEBDS members that it is imperative to treat the Amazon not as a liability, but as a valuable and strategic asset for Brazil.
With an eye on this not-so-distant future, we bring you news to celebrate CEBDS’s 24th anniversary. One of them is the launch, in a webinar on March 25, of the publication Visão Brasil 2050, a renewed and ambitious agenda for business action, which offers a roadmap for companies to contribute concretely to a vision of the future for a more just, resilient and sustainable society. The process was built with the participation of companies, civil society and academia, involving more than 4 thousand people. We value capturing different understandings on the topics, so that the document will be a fundamental pillar of the business agenda for Brazil in 2050.
We also launched the first Diversity Image Bank, completely free and accessible to the entire society, which will make images available for non-commercial use with the aim of fostering a culture of inclusion and representation. With the slogan “Diversity is here”, the Image Bank was created by the CEBDS communications team and the images are contributions from the more than 60 companies that make up the entity. It will be hosted on the CEBDS website (www.cebds.org), with frequent updates and will include images of women, black people, transgender people, people with disabilities and people from all regions of the country, illustrating the unique diversity of the Brazilian population. We understand that representation matters, and a lot.
We have reached this stage knowing that we are living in a transitional phase: the development model has changed, and the voice of business needs to echo above the noise. Consumers, armed with their smartphones, have information at their fingertips and are increasingly putting pressure on companies that are not committed to socio-environmental issues. Investors want assets based on ESG (environmental, social and governance) criteria to mitigate risks and achieve the positive impact that will make a difference in such an unequal world. The future is a regenerative economy based on collaboration. We are in the middle of this journey, but we need to accelerate.
(*) Marcos Bicudo is Chair of the Brazilian Business Council for Sustainable Development (CEBDS)
