Catch-up with COP26

A closer look at commitments made by a variety of countries.

Australia

Australia first founded and started exporting coal in the late 1700s (The Australian Government Geoscience Australia). They have recently been widely criticised by the global media for not agreeing to reduce their fossil fuel emissions and ‘not join[ing] an International effort to curb global emissions of methane (30 percent by 2030)” (The New York Times, 2021).

On the other hand, Australia has committed to reducing climate emissions by 2050 by using ‘technology development’ and increasing the use of technologies like clean hydrogen (The Evening Standard, 2021). The government has promised to invest more than £11 billion into these technologies, to lower energy costs and provide more environmentally friendly industries to thrive (BBC, 2021). There are also plans to trap the carbon deep underground in the soil which can help to reduce the carbon emissions in the air (BBC, 2021).

Australia’s commitment to this target, as well as the decision to attend the COP26 conference in Glasgow, shows that it is taking its part in the climate crisis seriously even if it is slower than other countries, it is committing to and signing agreements which is a step in the right direction and calls it a ‘strong, credible and responsible contribution to climate action’ (Australian Government, 2015).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in Australia:

• Financial Review in 2017, which was a workshop to create a strategy to move to an Earth Replenishing method for the economy.
• Flinders University in 2017, The Annual Investigator Lecture for Flinder’s University based on practical measures to Replenish Earth and we curated a conversation around net-positive value with local examples.
• Melbourne Town Hall in 2017, where we gave a presentation on the Replenish Strategy for Cities.
• In 2017, Replenish Earth was Invited by the South Australian Premier to explore how we can work together to rethink the way we work, live, play and move in Adelaide.
• 2020 We also worked with the Catalyst Network and IMPACT in 2020 to Replenish through the pandemic and Replenish at home.
• 2021 Most recently we have collaborated with the Government of Australia for the Level Crossing Removal Project: https://www.instagram.com/p/CT4sFcfI4t3/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

India

The Prime Minister of India expressed the country would become Net Zero by 2070 and ‘it would significantly expand renewable energy sources in its total energy mix’ (The New York Times, 2021). India also plans to work with the UK to create a project called the ‘Green Grids Initiative: One Sun One World One Grid, [and it] will connect 140 countries through a solar-powered electricity network’ ( The Independent, 2021). This collaborative plan will increase the use of clean energy and will also provide energy to some of the poorest communities by using the power of the sun, to make sure everyone has access to sustainable energy. The Vice President for Infrastructure at the World Bank said that this initiative will help ‘build an ecosystem based on mutual trust and shared benefit’ ( The Economic Times, 2021).

The country has also pledged to increase the amount of clean energy to 500 gigawatts by 2030 which shows its commitment to change as it is currently one of the ‘highest’ polluters in the world (The Guardian, 2021).

If India and the other countries at COP26 fulfill their pledges and they all commit to them it will mean that the global temperature will not rise above the limit of 2 degrees celsius (The Guardian, 2021).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in India:

• In 2009, Replenish Earth were invited to present at the Bharatiya Pravasi Divas on Indian Culture to President Pratibha Patil and Chief Minister Narendra Modi. We presented research and advice on the sustainable job market and assessed the potential for expanding the green economy which led to the Chief Minister of Gujarat, launching local clean-up campaigns in villages, later these were called Aadarsh Gaam, when the Chief Minister became the Prime Minister.
• In 2012 RE presented a research methods course at the Goa Institute of Management. It is a mandatory course and it has been designed to provide students with a practical introduction to research techniques and concepts.
• Also in 2012 we worked with ​​Gujarat Development to present an Educational Development Project.
• In 2016, we worked with Vibrant Gujarat to deliver a workshop on sustainable city management which was attended by MPs from 29 states of India and we curated a pan-city urban and architectural presentation on the future of sustainable development.
• In 2017 and 2018 we attended a public exhibition called Maker Fest India
• In 2019 we worked with Mahindra Cities to explore how cities can evolve and we gave a Keynote introducing the concepts of Replenish Earth to an audience of the top Architects, Urban Planners and Designers in India.
• In 2020 we worked with IIT to Create a curriculum around Mental Health and Environmental Wellbeing and we developed a course for 16,300 students to explore the epigenetic impact of our environments on our mental health.
• Also in 2020, we worked with DAV College for Girls to explore Replenish Earth. Created two courses for the Centre of Environment Planning & Technology.

Brazil

Brazil has recently signed a pledge to help reduce deforestation as well as more than 100 world leaders pledging to end this by 2030 [BBC, 2021]. In recent years, the Amazon rainforest, the largest rainforest in the world, has been continuously pillaged However this is a positive £14 billion investment in the right direction [BBC 2021]. In addition, George Eustice, UK’s Environment Secretary, said that this is a positive move for Brazil because in 2014 when countries tried to get a commitment to end deforestation, Brazil did not take part [BBC, 2021]. Johnson called this a “landmark” commitment and we should “end the role of humanity as nature’s conqueror, and instead become nature’s custodian” [BBC, 2021].

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in Brazil:

• In 2012 we worked at UN Rio + 20 to present Replenish Earth and World Leaders the potential of sustainable energy for all. The initiative created a campaign — https://www.seforall.org/ to aid developing countries in meeting their energy demands by 2030.
• In 2017 we worked with Jaime Lerner Architects to explore ways to increase green spaces in cities and to live in harmony with nature. This led to the Partnership with the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office, the Royal Institute of British Architects, University College London, Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment to showcase Jaime’s successes and to showcase a movie about meeting your dreams.
• In 2017 we worked at Zero Waste Week of Florianópolis which was a Teacher series to educate on zero waste.
• In 2018 we worked with Lisbon Lixo Zero and we Created a week of events to showcase zero waste and net-positive impact strategies to evolve business models towards replenishing earth.
• In 2019 we advised Smart City Curitiba, Designing Smart Cities using Emerging Technology and we Designed a strategic framework for overseeing the transition of the city from an analog method of data-capture to one where a dashboard is used to integrate a variety of technologies in the city.

China and USA

The US and China have recently made an unexpected but hopeful commitment to the “1.5C temperature goal set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement” (BBC, 2021). This is a promising commitment by China to reduce their emissions and to work with the USA They aim to “meet regularly to address the climate crisis over the next decade” (BBC, 2021). The agreement also saw China agreeing to look into their methane emissions as the country has some of the biggest greenhouse gas pollution in the world (The New York Times , 2021). This decision came about after 30 meetings between the two countries as well as multiple meetings at the COP26 Conference in Glasgow (The New York Times, 2021).

This is a hopeful agreement and shows how countries can work together to collaborate towards a mutual goal. Ultimately, it is the right step in the right direction to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce global temperature.

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in the USA:

• In 2018 we worked with JPL Nasa and discussed sustainable futures.
• In 2019 we worked with Fulbright helping them work on their multinational projects and talked about climate diplomacy. Also, we previously worked with MIT Future of People and introduced Replenish Earth to MIT and discussed Net Zero with the students at the conference. Most recently, we worked with UNDP & EY and helped host an event to discuss the challenges of technology and social change.

Argentina

In September 2021, Argentina led the High-Level Dialogue on Climate Action in the Americas, stressing the need for credit agencies to allow for enhanced environmental action (Climate Tracker, 2021). Argentina submitted its second NDC in the first days of COP 26, strengthening its carbon-cutting commitments (Climate Action Tracker, 2021; France 24, 2021).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following project in Argentina:

• In 2014 we collaborated with Coca Cola to create an Innovation Workshop. This led businesses to consider how to evolve in regenerative ways. ‘Un Mundo Sin Residuos — A World Without Waste’ — was launched after the workshop with the aim of creating a roadmap to sustainable innovation.

Austria

Austria’s delegation was led by Minister Leonore Gewessler who took the train to Glasgow, emphasizing the role of collective individual action in the global fight against climate change (Euronews, 2021). This empowering move strengthens Austria’s ambitious commitment to reach net-zero by 2040 (IISD, 2021), with the country pledging to completely eliminate coal in electricity production in 2020(Euractiv, 2021).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following project in Austria:

• At TEDx in Klagenfurt we hosted and interviewed the Prime Minister of Bhutan about the importance of entrepreneurship and his journey to happiness. The video from 2014 reached over 70,000 views and can be seen here. The aim was to encourage entrepreneurships with ethics. The PM of Bhutan kindly described the responsibility of social entrepreneurs as ‘Ethicpreneurs’.

Bhutan

Why hasn’t Bhutan set its net-zero targets? Because it’s already carbon negative! Since 2009, Bhutan has pledged to ensure that greenhouse gas emissions would not exceed naturally sequestered carbon from its forests (CNN, 2018). The pledges don’t only target the end emissions, but promote a green economy; banning export logging and providing free hydroelectric power generated by Bhutanese rivers (Climate Action, 2017).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in Bhutan:

• In 2015 we designed an immersive course in partnership with the Royal Government of Bhutan to educate postgraduate students on sustainable development at the Centre of Environment Planning & Technology University, India. The course was one of the most positively reviewed courses at the University.
• In 2010, we collaborated with the Government of Bhutan in 2010 to build a government strategy for sustainable economic growth. Bhutan has since become a Net Positive country, with net negative carbon emissions.
• In 2011 Replenish Earth and the Government of Bhutan participated in a campaign to make Gross National Happiness a recognised metric by the United Nations. This was passed after a general assembly was called to identify methods to support countries in measuring wellbeing.

UAE

UAE was one of the 141 countries which backed the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use at COP26 (COP 26, 2021). While the country does not have much naturally forested land, it has a wealth of mangrove forests, shining a light on the importance of blue carbon. The UAE aims to increase their mangrove forest area by 50%, helping the country sequester carbon as well as protect the coast and strengthen natural ecosystems (National News UAE, 2021).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in UAE:

• In 2013 during a workshop at the World Future Energy Summit, we presented research on the first academically rigorous energy benchmark of Abu Dhabi.
• In 2010 created the first Post-Occupancy Evaluation Methodology for the UAE.
• At the Women’s Economic Empowerment Global Summit in 2017, we helped develop a public strategy for Women’s economic empowerment — designing a strategy for sustainable development as a core tenant of female empowerment. Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi was in attendance.

UK

The UK is proposing a 2040 deadline for selling the last petrol cars, mitigating emissions from their most substantial sector. Not only is it curbing transport emissions, it is also tackling carbon capture from its source by pledging to mobilize $1 billion USD of finance to cut emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (Climate Change News, 2021).

Projects

Replenish Earth has previously worked on the following projects in the UK:

• In 2018 we hosted and moderated a panel on Green Tech and business at the Said Business School at Oxford University. The conversation discussed successful metrics in tech and business, and how they include key environmental characteristics.
• Recently, in 2021, we partnered with Terra Carta to push for sustainable development through the markets initiative. We participated as part of their knowledge and industry experts and developed a media campaign to promote Terra Carta.
• In 2018 we delivered a webinar on how to create Replenishing Ecosystems through circular economy strategies. The webinar was hosted by the UK Green Building Council and was attended by 150 industry experts.

To find out more about how you can ‘Give more than you take’ sign-up for our online course here.