Novozymes backs climate change pact

While attending the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21), which ran through Dec. 11 in Paris, Danish biotechnology group Novozymes supported an international agreement between governments on climate change, which seeks to limit global temperature increases to 2 degrees Celsius, above pre-industrial levels.

The company—whose CEO, Peder Holk Nielsen, addressed the international conference—believes an effective agreement at the conference will drive the world toward a low-carbon future. Such an agreement includes stable pricing for carbon, public-private collaboration, robust policy frameworks for private investments to decarbonize the global economy, financial and technical assistance to enable all countries to transition to a low-carbon sustainable model of economic growth, and offer a clear role for business and other stakeholders to implement and review Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, capacity building, adaptation, finance and investment, mitigation and other areas.

“Solutions exist for many of the problems we face,” Nielsen said. “It’s about the political courage and long-term vision to implement them. We urgently need a meaningful cost on carbon emissions, designed to effectively alter our behavior, guide our decisions and incentivize solutions.”