Corporates tackling the key themes within sustainability
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KPMG’s specialist cross-functional Sustainable Futures team explores some of the key sustainability themes facing corporates in 2024 and beyond
2024 has been a landmark year for the corporate reporting landscape, with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and EU Taxonomy (EUT) set to impact more companies than any previous sustainability regulation to date.
Many companies are focused on meeting the reporting requirements, with topics such as biodiversity, climate and the circular economy undoubtedly requiring focus both from a business strategy and a reporting perspective.
The CSRD mandates that companies conduct climate scenario analysis, to assess the resilience of their business model to potential future changes in our climate, society and economy.
In the race to Net Zero, as businesses accelerate their efforts to mitigate climate change by setting science-based GHG emissions reduction targets, many are overlooking an equally important aspect, climate change adaptation.
Adaptation means anticipating the adverse effects of our already changing climate and taking appropriate action to prevent or minimise the damage from extreme weather events which are expected to increase in frequency and intensity in the coming years. Indeed, EUT requires businesses to assess the future resilience of assets to our changing climate, for a business activity to be considered sustainable.
The importance of adaptation is further highlighted through Ireland’s second National Adaptation Framework (2024) which mandates the development of adaptation strategies by 13 key sectors of the Irish Economy and recognises the critical role businesses play in delivering national resilience through the development of new solutions and business practices.
Dr Barry O’Dwyer is a Director in KPMG Sustainable Futures and leads the Climate Risk Team. Barry works with supporting clients in building resilience to climate change, to both decarbonise their business activities and identify their exposures to changing climate conditions across the value chain, assess their current level of adaptation preparedness, and identify solutions to overcome any adaptation deficits. This helps our clients develop long-term solutions to future-proof their business, increasing both competitiveness and value.
Businesses are increasingly understanding that their business models and our economies are underpinned and dependent on nature and the ecosystem services it provides. The continued loss of nature and biodiversity and the intersection with climate change presents systemic risks to businesses across all sectors, especially agri-food and financial services. CBD COP16 has just ended in Cali in Colombia — the first biodiversity COP since the landmark Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was agreed in 2022.
The sharp increase in corporate attendance and the announcement that 502 organisations globally have committed to adopting TNFD-aligned nature-related risk management and corporate reporting is testament to how seriously a growing number of businesses are taking these topics.
In Ireland, 2024 saw the launch of the 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBAP) — Ireland’s contribution to the Global Biodiversity Framework. Many of the NBAP actions relate to government, local authorities, and civil society, but businesses and financial institutions must also play their part in tackling nature loss.
Under the newly enacted EU Nature Restoration Law, Ireland is required to develop a detailed National Restoration Plan setting out how Ireland will protect and restore at least 20% of our land and sea by 2030 and all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050. 2025 and the coming years will be seminal for transitioning our businesses and economies to a nature-positive and net zero pathway.
Our nature and biodiversity experts, led by Director Thomas Ball, are supporting public and private sector clients to identify and understand their nature-related impacts, risks, dependencies and opportunities.
Circular economy policy is gaining momentum across the world and 2024 will likely see the UN complete negotiations on a treaty targeting the end of plastic pollution following the commitment reached in 2024.
Ireland is currently operating a linear economy model following a ‘take– make–waste’ pathway for resources, manufacturing and products. With a circularity rate of 1.8%, Ireland currently lags well behind the EU average of 12.8%. This traditional, non-sustainable economic model is not only wasteful and harmful to the natural environment, but it is also a barrier to progress against national climate targets, particularly for the waste sector.
At present, many business models are centred around linear economies due to this model being engrained in modern society, such as extracting oil to manufacture single-use plastic products and disposing of them in landfill. In contrast, a circular economy model aims to close the loop and adopt a ‘take-make-remake’ pathway for resources, seeking to prolong product lifecycles for as long as possible and ensuring waste materials can be salvaged and re-used as input materials elsewhere. A national pivot towards circularity will not only reduce resource intensity but will also aid in meeting national climate objectives following a reduction in carbon-intensive practices, such as resource extraction and processing. Companies should evaluate all aspects of their supply chains to seek ways of improving circularity through novel methods of waste reduction or innovative product design.
We provide a range of tailor-made tools and strategies for our clients to support them in adopting a circular economy strategy. This helps our clients get ahead of new circular economy legislation and unlock new value chain opportunities, increasing both competitiveness and value.
Is your business struggling to get a handle on how best to meet your sustainability obligations? Are you unsure of how best to make the most of the business opportunities provided by decarbonisation and the circular economy?
Visit to learn how our award-winning multidisciplinary team of sustainability practitioners, economists, engineers, strategists, accountants and financiers can help you navigate the complex and fast-evolving area of climate change and sustainability. We’d be delighted to hear from you.