Climate change will be the defining test of our time. It could also be the opportunity of a lifetime. Across every sector, businesses are already finding new ways to innovate, invest and transform industries. With the right global policy support, businesses can continue to leverage their entrepreneurialism, innovation and capital to scale up even greater solutions to deliver the goals of the Paris Agreement.
In the past decade, extreme weather has cost the global economy over US$2 trillion – threatening lives, livelihoods and the stability of business and economies everywhere. The scale of the challenge is significant. Entire industries, supply chains and energy systems will require major investment, bold innovation and real collaboration.
But the smartest companies aren’t waiting. They’re leading the change. Turning risk into resilience and challenge into growth. Driving innovation, creating jobs, safeguarding the economy and the environment.
Now could be the opportunity of a lifetime for business to deliver for the climate but we can’t act alone.
As the official voice of business at the United Nations Climate Change Conference and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the International Chamber of Commerce is committed to working with all parties, from government to academia, to ensure businesses can seize the opportunity and help to deliver on the US$1.3 trillion climate finance goal agreed at COP29.
Representing over 45 million businesses in over 170 countries, and committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement, we are mobilising thousands of businesses and chambers of commerce who understand that climate action isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do.
The greatest challenge of our time is a chance to create the opportunity of a lifetime.
Policy recommendations: Making the opportunity happen
Business has the innovation, capital and drive to help deliver the US$1.3 trillion climate finance goal agreed at COP29. But unlocking investment at scale requires an enabling policy environment. In other words, governments need to reduce barriers and create incentives that give business the clarity and confidence to act.
The decisions we make until 2030 will determine all of our futures. Now is the moment for global leaders to look forward, not back: to help ensure the clean transition is a business opportunity not a business barrier. To unlock a new era of low-carbon technologies, innovation and investment that will deliver a more stable, secure and equitable future.
These are the policy actions that our members and the business community are calling for.
Provide clarity, certainty and transparency around NDCs to enable businesses to accelerate targets and investment
Nationally determined contribution (NDCs) are critical to provide the certainty and clarity businesses need to accelerate their net-zero targets and investment. But businesses can only support NDCs if these goals and plans are clear, transparent and actionable.
To plan effectively, businesses need detailed information beyond mere mitigation targets. That means greater clarity on planned legislation, regulation, use of mitigation policies (such as carbon pricing), financial measures and planned investments. Governments must also demonstrate how they intend to couple legislation with employment and social planning to ensure a just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent green jobs.
Introduce targeted adjustments in key financial regulations to quadruple international climate finance going to emerging markets.
Emerging and developing economies receive just 14% of international climate finance, yet need an additional US$450 to US$550 billion a year to stay on a net-zero path.
Under the current macroprudential framework, such as Basel III, banks are disincentivised from financing climate projects in emerging and developing markets.
Targeted adjustments – such as better recognition of development bank guarantees and other risk mitigation tools – could quadruple the bank capital available for climate projects in emerging markets without compromising global financial stability.
Remove barriers preventing the scaling of private sector adaptation investment from closing the global adaptation funding gap.
Climate-related events are intensifying, making adaptation critical for resilience. Yet, global efforts remain fragmented and underfunded – especially in developing countries, where vulnerability is highest and financial capacity is lowest.
Scaling private capital for adaptation requires targeted reforms in three areas: data collection (ensuring access to high-quality, open climate risk data, enabling better risk assessments and adaptation planning); governance (supporting better engagement of business in domestic climate/adaptation planning); and finance (creating financial incentives for adaptation and spaces/sandboxes for testing promising solutions, i.e. insurance-linked instruments, blended finance tools for adaption).
End the patchwork of global climate-trade policies and ensure measures support, rather than undermine, equitable trade in sustainable goods and services.
Climate and trade policies are becoming increasingly interconnected and misaligned. Trade-related climate measures, particularly carbon border levies (also known as CBAMs or BCAs), risk disproportionately disadvantaging developing countries and creating barriers to market access.
Trade-related environmental measures should enhance, not restrict, markets for sustainable goods and services. The current patchwork of conflicting global rules needs to end. Climate and trade ministers must come together and create new principles to ensure trade and climate policies are better aligned and mutually reinforcing.
Get involved!
Tackling climate change demands more than ambition – it requires action. Join us on the Road to Belém to ensure that your solutions are seen, supported and scaled. Help us show global leaders what’s possible when business and policy align – and why their decisions at COP30 must support the conditions for climate action at scale.
The opportunity is here. Businesses are already delivering.
Transitioning to a low carbon economy isn’t a pipe dream. Across every sector, businesses are innovating, investing and leveraging emerging opportunities – creating value for business, economies and the planet. Early movers aren’t just keeping up – they’re gaining a competitive edge in this new economy. For them, a clean transition is a strategic investment in growth, innovation, talent and long-term resilience. Are you making the most of the opportunity yet?
The International Chamber of Commerce explores key climate and sustainability policy challenges – from scaling private finance in emerging markets to accelerating circular economy solutions. This includes commissioning in-depth analysis from leading organisations, offering data-driven insights for policymakers and business leaders.
The permanent phase of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is set to begin on 1 January 2026, ending the current reporting-only period. businesses of all sizes across global value chains face continuing uncertainty as critical technical guidance remains unpublished. ICC calls for urgent clarity on the rules that will govern the definitive regime so businesses can plan effectively for 2026.
On behalf of business and industry, ICC’s statement to the closing plenary of COP30 recognises a strong signal of collective support for the Paris Agreement but stresses the need for bold and urgent action, grounded in solutions that truly work for people, the economy and the planet.
Tackling climate change not only requires innovation and investment but also competition frameworks that are fit for the green transition. The ICC Call to Action on Antitrust for Climate Action urges policymakers to align antitrust policy with sustainability goals to unlock responsible cooperation and accelerate real-economy impact.
As momentum builds for collective climate and environmental action, understanding how companies can collaborate responsibly for sustainability purposes is moving to the centre of policy debates. This guide provides direction for businesses seeking to align sustainability cooperation with competition compliance.
ICC has issued a powerful statement as the official focal point for business and industry (BINGO) at COP30. Delivered by ICC Deputy Secretary General Andrew Wilson, the statement calls on ministers to seize the moment and forge an outcome capable of driving real-economy transformation by accelerating implementation, strengthening global alignment with the 1.5°C goal, and unlocking climate finance at scale — especially for emerging and developing economies.
As the official Focal Point for Business to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, ICC delivered the Business and Industry NGOs (BINGOs) Statement at the opening plenary of the 30th United Nations Climate Change conference (COP30).
To meet global climate goals, business ambition must be matched by credible frameworks for action. This ICC-commissioned Oxera report sets out 14 recommendations to strengthen the integrity and effectiveness of voluntary carbon markets and mobilise private finance for climate action. When grounded in transparency, integrity and strong standards, voluntary carbon markets can enable businesses to invest credibly and confidently in a net-zero future.
Seeking nominations for a new independent expert panel, which will develop guidelines and implementation steps for a global carbon emissions accounting system based on financial accounting principles.
Small and medium-sized enterprises are vital to global climate action, yet access to green finance remains a major barrier to scaling their impact. This ICC–Sage report shows how digital and AI tools can help bridge this gap by simplifying reporting and boosting access to funding. It calls for five urgent actions – from streamlining reporting standards to expanding sustainability-linked finance – to accelerate SME climate action and make COP30 a turning point for green finance.
Basel III made the financial system sturdier after the 2008 crisis. But rules built to prevent a repeat of the last financial crisis now risk slowing the climate transition. Emerging markets need hundreds of billions annually for the world to meet climate targets and stay on a net-zero path. With rule clarifications, targeted adjustments and smart reforms, a unique opportunity presents itself to align financial stability with climate needs and unlock vital private capital.
ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton issues a vital message to climate ministers ahead of COP30 in Brazil, calling for investment-ready climate plans, a clear Global Goal on Adaptation, and a finance plan that unlocks private capital to drive growth, resilience and a just transition.
On behalf of businesses worldwide, ICC emphasised key priorities for a successful climate conference (COP30) in November 2025 in an official statement addressing the COP30 presidency and delegates at Pre-COP negotiations in Brasilia.
Trade finance underpins 80% to 90% of global trade, making it one of the most influential financial instruments in the world. Yet to date, it remains largely untapped as a tool for climate action. ICC, Boston Consulting Group and leading trade banks have developed the most comprehensive approach yet to assessing sustainability across the entire trade journey, paving the way for a new tool that could unlock trillions of dollars in climate finance.
Private finance for adaptation is lagging, with just 8% coming from business in 2022. The right policies can close this gap. At COP30, governments should make climate risk data open, weave private roles into National Adaptation Plans, and use procurement, regulation and innovative finance to reward resilience. Done well, adaptation will not be philanthropy but strategy – protecting economies and giving early movers an opportunity to shape markets.
Sage Foundation is supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to take advantage of the opportunity of a lifetime. In partnership with Village Capital, it welcomes 165 purpose-driven startups across Europe, the UK and the US, to shape a more sustainable, green and inclusive future.
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Stay up-to-date with the latest news, tools and insights at the intersection of business and the environment, including climate action, the circular economy, trade and environment, energy policy and sustainability.
