Letters | How Hong Kong brands can help deliver a zero-carbon future
- As the world transitions to a sustainable future, brands need to innovate, fully deploy design and technology, and draw up concrete plans to invest in a green future
The Asian Financial Forum (AFF) held in January echoed global views on environment, social and governance (ESG) development. Green finance is playing an enabling role as the world transitions to a zero-carbon future.
Sustainable companies need to constantly rethink the purpose and the means of conducting business in both meaningful and profitable ways to empower people and match diverse stakeholder needs.
Progressive firms will factor ESG considerations into investment strategies, business planning, and product and service value chains. Brands need to innovate, fully deploy design, digitalisation and technology, and invest in a green future with concrete plans and actions to meet climate-related targets.
Among the speakers at AFF was Mark Carney, UN special envoy on climate action and finance, who noted that there are enormous opportunities for countries and companies and that the financial sector has become become “a window through which ambitious climate action can deliver the sustainable future that people around the world have been demanding”.