Do you step out of gray or do you stay in it to exert influence (through engagement)? It is an important and frequently asked question after the publication of the IPCC report. And now also a question that Femke de Vries asked aloud to the five sector organisations during the fifth Climate Work Conference of the Climate Agreement.

Bart van den Hurk, one of the lead authors of the ICCP report, gave a shot across the bow: "We should not wait for governments. The change has to come from the bottom up," he added. A decision to say goodbye to 'grey' contributes to that change. In the run-up to the panel discussion, he gave attendees an insider's look at the IPCC report as a co-author. Van den Hurk thinks it is wonderful to see that a network is being forged from the corridors in Glasgow: "A group of companies that is large enough to be something more than a forerunner. It's a powerful signal from the business sector, but don't forget the consumers who are demanding change."

Insurers opt for engagement for the time being

Back to De Vries' question. Richard Weurding, managing director of the Dutch Association of Insurers, replied that this issue is on the table. Because what do you really do with grey shares? "When I look through the eye hairs, most insurers still opt for engagement for the time being." He was keen to stress that public-private partnerships are the way forward to keeping climate change manageable, but at the same time pointed out that clarity is one of the most important conditions for being effective. "Not only in the short term, but especially in the medium term. The government must take much more control. It is constantly being called, but it is not yet getting off the ground sufficiently."
From the risk side, Weurding sees a similar movement: "Flooding is only partly covered by insurers. We need to look at that now and do much more than we do from a public-private partnership perspective, also together with international reinsurers."

Government must choose

Eelco Dubbeling, director of the Dutch Banking Association (NVB), added that it would help enormously if there was clarity about transition paths. "If the government says: from that date we will move away from fossil, then you have a clear path. If the government does not make that choice, then we must do it, as a company or as a sector and together. I think we as umbrella organisations have a role to play in this."

Data matters

Iris van de Looij, managing director of DUFAS, responded by indicating that every company has its own style and plans. But what is really important is available data to be able to realize those plans. "Do we create these standards as a sector ourselves or do we create standards based on science and link a transaction objective to them? We can decide a lot ourselves, but we do need support." Dubbeling: "And if that takes too long; then we will discuss this ourselves with the government and the companies in which we invest."

Are we doing enough?

De Vries then asked the following question: are we as a sector doing enough? "Reporting is one thing. Taking concrete action is two," says Edith Maat, director of the Pension Federation. "But even then, the question remains whether we are ambitious enough? The objective of the Climate Commitment is very clear, but how do you translate that into practice? And is it enough? What we do, we will have to constantly adjust. And we have to keep learning forever whether they are the right strategies. It's not about what's right or wrong, but whether we're making enough progress."

As a sector, we need to look for the pain

Dubbeling, in turn, believed that progress is being made, but at the same time we must also be strict with ourselves. "I'm glad there was talk of coal at Glasgow, but it's not moving fast enough. So we have to speed up and look for the pain." Enno Wiertsema, director of Adfiz, agrees: "It is not enough to be satisfied with one's own efforts if the whole is not enough. So find your own boundaries and work hard, with each other. This also includes looking for and, if necessary, educating the customer." According to him, the trick is to "show the customer that climate action on two sides delivers something: for the climate, but also financially."
The disaster in Limburg has made it clear that advisors play an important role in raising awareness, according to Weurding. "We learned from this that entrepreneurs close to the Geul had taken out a policy, but not always for the flood risk they ran. In those cases, apparently, a different choice was made, and that is a pity. Especially considering the suffering that the flood has caused and continues to cause."

Make engagement results transparent

According to Van de Looij, the challenge also lies in showing better what the effect of engagement is. "Also with regard to the products that come from fossil fuels, because that is what is lacking at the moment. Share the success stories to learn from!". Maat added that "in the long term, of course, everyone has to get out of fossil. This means that we have to solve a huge transition issue together. Because how do you get there in a good way? How do you get energy produced sustainably? We have to solve that from everyone's responsibility, and we also do that from the Climate Commitment."

Dubbeling: "I miss leadership in the input from politics. The AFM looks at the duty of care, for example when making your home more sustainable. But if you look at what needs to be done to make your home more sustainable, it is a complicated task. This should be more convenient, efficient and easier, for example via an all-in-1 package."

Promises for next year

Eelco Dubbeling: "We have lost nature. We need to go back to that nature and make sure that we actively help nature, especially by making it possible. By setting milestones together, meeting them and knocking on the door of the government for clear transition paths and frameworks within which we can operate and especially by taking action."
Edith Maat: "New themes will be added, such as biodiversity, circular economy and climate adaptation. We need to tackle these themes sector-wide and share knowledge with each other. Having a good discussion with each other and taking on our role."
Enno Wiertsema: "Awareness and climate action: we are now developing a work programme for the consultants, of which large parts will be ready in a year's time. This is about the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, so a little further than just climate, but Sustainable Development Goal or Sustainable Development Goal number 13 will certainly have a place in that. Goal 13 is Climate Action. The program helps advisors to give their clients sustainable advice where it is desired and possible, for now and for the future."
Iris van de Looij: "The power of a dome is to do together what you cannot do alone. So together we ensure more harmonization of the measurement techniques and the adjustment of relevant data in order to make the right choices. From a platform we can learn from each other and then implement standards."
Richard Weurding: "It is a top priority to realise public-private partnerships on tackling climate change, a second proposal is to share the experiences with engagement with each other. For this we could build an infrastructure within the financial sector, so that we can easily find each other and make more impact from shared experience. In doing so, Weurding points to the experiences within the ICSR covenant for the insurance sector. A final priority is to address flood risk through more public-private partnerships."

During the subsession, project leader Edwin Lokkerbol of the Living Lab Soil & Technology of the municipality of Gouda discussed a large and costly risk for home and building owners: subsidence due to drought. He also showed what the municipality of Gouda, one of the lowest-lying municipalities in the Netherlands, is doing about this.

"Subsidence is not just a technical issue," he emphasized. "Because how are you going to build in a soil that is sinking further and further? And how do you do that as sustainably as possible? Campus Gouda literally uses our own living environment as a living lab to let students learn and work. How can we tackle subsidence together and create a beautiful, liveable world for the next generation? Very exciting, because we are going to do this innovatively, sustainably and circularly. Educational institutions of different levels can reinforce each other in this."