Research tells us with a high degree of confidence that: •  In the Northern Hemisphere the last 30 years have been the warmest since AngloSaxon times; indeed, eight of the ten warmest years on record in the UK have occurred since 2002; 3  •  Atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases are at levels not seen in 800,000 years; and  •  The rate of sea level rise is quicker now than at any time over the last 2 millennia. 4  Evidence is mounting of man’s role in climate change. Human drivers are judged extremely likely to have been the dominant cause of global warming since the mid-20th century. 5 While natural fluctuations may mask it temporarily, the underlying human-induced warming trend of two-tenths of a degree per decade has continued unabated since the 1970s. 6 While there is always room for scientific disagreement about climate change (as there is with any scientific issue) I have found that insurers are amongst the most determined advocates for tackling it sooner rather than later. And little wonder. While others have been debating the theory, you have been dealing with the reality: •  Since the 1980s the number of registered weather-related loss events has tripled; and  •  Inflation-adjusted insurance losses from these events have increased from an annual average of around $ in the 1980s to around $ over the past decade. 7  The challenges currently posed by climate change pale in significance compared with what might come.
In any field, financial, scientific or other, the most effective disclosures are: •  Consistent – in scope and objective across the relevant industries and sectors;  •  Comparable – to allow investors to assess peers and aggregate risks;  •  Reliable – to ensure users can trust data;  •  Clear – presented in a way that makes complex information understandable; and  •  Efficient – minimising costs and burdens while maximising benefits. Meeting these standards requires coordination, something the G20 and FSB are uniquely placed to provide. The logical starting point is a co-ordinated assessment of what constitutes effective disclosure, by those who understand what is valuable and feasible. One idea is to establish an industry-led group, a Climate Disclosure Task Force, to design and deliver a voluntary standard for disclosure by those companies that produce or emit carbon. Companies would disclose not only what they are emitting today, but how they plan their transition to the net-zero world of the future. The G20 – whose member states account for around 85% of global emissions 28 – has a unique ability to make this possible. This kind of proposal takes its lead from the FSB’s successful catalysing of improved disclosure by the world’s largest banks following the financial crisis, via the Enhanced Disclosure Task Force. The EDTF’s recommendations, published in October 2012, were the product of collaboration between banks, analysts and investors.