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2021-11-15 00:00:00.0

International experts debate the role of trade policy in the fight against climate change

A moment of the debate, organised by ScottishPower, in which the relationship between trade, climate action and foreign policy was analysed.

The legal team at ScottishPower, the Iberdrola group's UK subsidiary, hosted a meeting of renowned world experts at the COP26 Climate Summit to discuss the pivotal role played by trade policies in the fight against climate change.

The panel, made up of Laura Lane, Director of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability at UPS; Jakob Kiefer, Head of the Public Affairs Group at ABB; Hoe Lim, Director of the Environmental Division at the World Trade Organization (WTO); and Alison Hamilton, New Zealand's Deputy Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization (WTO), analysed how trade policies can be better aligned with climate change objectives.

The experts also talked about Delivering a Climate Trade Agenda: Industry Insights (Application of a climate trade programme: Industry perspectives), a report recently published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in collaboration with international law firm Clifford Chance.

Børge Brende, President of the World Economic Forum, also joined the event to deliver the keynote speech on the important role and interactions between trade, the climate and foreign policy in the fight against climate change.

The WEF report explains that historically, trade and climate policy have largely been developed in separate silos. However, the pressing nature of the climate emergency demands more attention be given to the role trade policy can play in speeding up the reduction in emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change. The report gives the vision of more than 30 companies around the world, including Iberdrola and ScottishPower.

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About Iberdrola

Iberdrola is a leading global energy supplier -the third-largest by market capitalisation in the world and the leader in renewables- championing the energy transition towards a low-emissions economy. The group supplies energy to around 100 million people in dozens of countries and has renewable, grid and retail activities in Europe (Spain, the UK, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the US, Brazil, Mexico and Australia, while counting markets including Japan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland among its growth platforms.

With a workforce of more than 37,000 and assets of over €122.5 billion, it recorded turnover in excess of €33 billion and net profit slightly exceeding €3.6 billion in 2020. The company contributes to the maintenance of 400,000 jobs in its supply chain, with an annual procurement budget of €14 billion. A leader in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has committed more than €120bn over the last two decades to building a sustainable energy model based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.