As COP26 finance adviser and UN special envoy Mark Carney made clear at the IFAC and ACCA Climate Week event in September 2020, the accountancy profession is essential to the world’s achievement of a low-carbon economy.
Of course, the contribution of individual accountants to the transition will depend on their role, but there are few activities that accountants undertake that do not require them to think about climate impacts and their financial consequences.
The transition to a net-zero world capable of keeping global warming below 2°C requires climate-literate accountants who can:
- advise their clients and employers on the risks, liability and reputational damage arising from corporate activity that contributes to climate change
- support the strategic, operational and financial assessment of climate change, and steer their organisation towards the opportunities that decarbonisation brings
- provide management and investors with the information they need to understand the current and prospective impact of climate-related matters on an organisation, and its financial position and prospects.