GRAIN
Following the targets proposed by the IPCC in the 2015 Paris Agreement for keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees, corporate commitment to reducing emissions in order to reach this goal has been minimal. Particularly the agriculture sector is failing to take the necessary steps. As public pressure (particularly from youth activists) increases, there has been a shift towards ‘net zero’- focussed on offsetting emissions rather than reducing them. Such initiatives, which heavely feature NbS such as REDD+, facilitate the appropriation of land by rich, powerful actors, to the detriment of local communities. Further, the amount of land necessary to offset current emissions exceeds the amount of land ‘available’ for this endeavour. This demonstrates the shortsightedness and untenability of this approach.
Key words: ‘Net Zero’, Corporate Greenwashing, Land Rights
Corporate greenwashing: “net zero” and “nature-based solutions” are a deadly fraud