20 April, 2023 online and on-site in Stockholm
Exponential Solutions Day
Welcome to Exponential Solutions Day at Stockholm Climate Week
Watch the broadcast from Exponential Solutions Day at Stockholm Climate Week:
Every year, Earth Day on April 22 offers a moment to check in on the state of our planet.
This Earth Day, we know from the latest science that our planet is not in a good state. Human activity has already warmed the world by 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels, bringing with it more frequent and more intense extreme weather events that are harming people and nature on planet Earth.
We must halve emissions by 2030 to limit warming to 1.5°C, putting our planet on a better track and avoiding catastrophic climate change.
But the latest science also told us that the solutions to meet this challenge are here, now, and are affordable.
What we need to do is scale up the existing solutions – in fact, they need to scale 5x faster than today in order to halve emissions by 2030.
The goal of the Exponential Solutions Day at Stockholm Climate Week was to change the narrative on the energy transformation to a narrative of exponential optimism. The day brought together leaders in policy, science and business stressing that we’re at a critical moment in time while highlighting the opportunities of transforming the way we live, work, and thrive in a sustainable world.
“The transformations are the right thing to do and also the smart thing to do,” said the UN Secretary General’s Special Adviser on Climate Action, Selwin Hart: “They can drive investments, innovation and far stronger and more sustainable profitability, productivity, employment and growth.”
“Renewable energies are attractive from the perspective of employment, job creation and innovation,” Teresa Ribera echoed, Spain’s Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge. “Scaling stable and low operational cost energy solutions means governments can invest more in social needs and innovation.”
UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for the UAE, Razan Al Mubarak, stressed the importance of nature: “There is no Paris Agreement without protecting, managing and restoring nature,” she said, applauding the partners and members of the UN-backed Race to Zero campaign that are actively integrating nature into their work, highlighting the Exponential Roadmap for Natural Climate Solutions.
“There is no safe landing on linear journey,” Exponential Roadmap Initiative Co-chair Johan Rockström said: “It’s all about exponentials. We have the solutions, they can be scaled and they get us a better outcome.”
Programme
All times in Central European Summer Time (CEST). Find out in your local time zone here
11:00–12:00 Exponential Solutions: Solutions to transform the way we live, work and thrive in a sustainable world
Welcome to the Exponential Solutions Day. We are excited to bring together world leaders in science, policy, and business to explore solutions to the greatest challenges of our time: reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030.
The session will introduce the narrative of exponential optimism, through Exponential Roadmap Initiative’s CEO & Co-founder Johan Falk, calling on all companies to halve emissions before 2030 in the Race to Zero. The session will also highlight the latest planetary science and how leading companies are taking action in line with science to cut their own emissions and the emissions they influence.
Speakers:
- Selwin Hart, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Climate Action and Assistant Secretary-General for the Climate Action Team, United Nations
- Bogolo Kenewendo, Special Adviser Africa and Africa Director, UN Climate Change High-Level Champions
- David Ekelund, CEO, Icebug
- Solitaire Townsend, Chief Solutionst and Co-founder, Futerra
- Johan Falk, CEO and Co-founder, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
- Dr. Johan Rockström, Director, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
12:00–12:30 — Exponential nature solutions: Accelerating the shift towards net zero emissions from land and food
Greenhouse gas emissions from land and food need to reach net zero by 2030. This is a huge opportunity for businesses to drive the biggest transformation of the food and land sectors in a century.
Now is the time to accelerate the shift towards regenerative agriculture, sustainable forestry, healthier, plant-based food and protect and restore nature. We need a laser focus on becoming nature positive by 2030 by exponentially scaling food and nature solutions through enabling policy, technology and climate leadership.
Speakers:
- Razan Al Mubarak, UN High-Level Climate Champion for COP28
- Owen Gaffney, Co-founder, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
- Cecilia McAleavey, Director of Sustainable Eating and Public Affairs, Oatly
12:30–13:15 Lunch break
13:15–14:15 Exponential Energy Transformation: The race to more than 50% clean energy by 2030
This session explores the exponential scaling of wind and solar, storage and cutting energy waste. We will show the results of the rapid scaling of these solutions and how they can contribute to cutting greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030.
Speakers:
- Teresa Ribera, Deputy Prime Minister of Spain and Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge
- Dr. Arunabha Ghosh, CEO, Council on Energy, Environment and Water
- Laura Perez, Senior Project Manager, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
- Lina Håkansdotter, VP & Head of Public Affairs, H2 Green Steel
- Sebastian Hald Buhl, Country Manager for Sweden and Norway, Ørsted
- Dr. Nafeez Ahmed, Director, The Futures Lab, Unitas Communication
14:15–15:15 — Exponential Transport Transformation: The race towards zero emission personal transport
The personal vehicles account for 15% of the global emissions. This session shows the key strategies to keep within the “1.5°C budget” for personal vehicles and focus on how to accelerate this transformation and remove the blockers.
The exponential growth of electric vehicles, mobility as a service, and micro mobility in cities, driven by smart technologies. We recognize that electrifying cars is not enough and that we need to make zero-emission cars from zero-emission components, including steel and batteries and that we need cars to be shared – all of which however is possible this decade
Speakers:
- Fredrika Klarén, Head of Sustainability, Polestar
- Klara Bergkvist, Head of GoMore Sweden
- Anisa Kamadoli Costa, Chief Sustainability Officer, Rivian
- Mohammed Hegazy, Transport Lead, Climate Champions Team
- Johan Falk, CEO and Co-founder, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
15:15–16:00 — Coffee break
16:00–16:45 — Exponential Supply chains: Decarbonizing global supply chains
A significant share of global emissions resides from global supply chains and we need to transform the way we produce, transport and consume goods and services.
This session brings together leading companies which are halving emissions through their global supply chains and work to share and scale leading best practises globally.
Speakers:
- Gabrielle Ginér, Head of environmental sustainability, BT Group
- Mats Pellbäck Scharp, Head of Sustainability, Ericsson
- Louise Rehbinder, Director, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
- Peder Weibull Hartman, Program Leader, Renewable Electricity for Supply Partners, Inter IKEA Group
- Jenny Sandahl, Sustainability Director for Design and Materials, Ericsson
- Bessma Aljarbou, Head of Supplier Carbon Solutions, Apple
- Mie Prehn Nygaard, Decarbonisation manager, Ørsted
- Ana Stivanin Senatore, Sustainability Manager, Telefônica Brasil
16:45–17:15 — Greening cash: A call to action to companies to green their cash and banks to support them
For many companies the carbon footprint by their investments and held in big banks are a significant or even the biggest source of their carbon emissions. We now need to support companies to shift their cash to become a positive force for climate, nature and people, supported by banks. At this event, we will present a greening cash action guide, linked to the 1.5°C Business Playbook, which companies can apply immediately to take action.
Speakers:
- Jakob König, Project lead and research – Fair Finance Guide, Sveriges Konsumenter
- Paul Moinester, Founder and Executive Director, The Outdoor Policy Outfit
- Allison Fajans-Turner, Founder, Strategy Advisor, BankFWD
- Catharina Belfrage Sahlstrand, Group Head of Sustainability, Handelsbanken
- Johan Falk, CEO and Co-founder, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
17:15–17:30 — Exponential Solutions Closing
This session aims to look out to the 2023 climate year – the year that needs to be the year of “game-changing climate action”, as UN Secretary-General António Guterres said.
Knowing that the solutions to halving emissions by 2030 are here and affordable, as per the latest scientific climate assessment – what needs to happen for them to scale exponentially? What are the concrete “game-changing” actions that companies, policy and finance can take as we look towards the UN Climate Ambition Summit and the Global Stocktake at COP28?
Speakers:
- Johan Falk, CEO and Co-founder, Exponential Roadmap Initiative
- Tessa Vincent, Engagement Lead, Race to Zero
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About the event
Stockholm Climate Week comes on the heels of the last major scientific report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that can inform climate action before 2030 and that issued a “final warning to act on climate change before it’s too late,” as the Guardian put it.
It takes place in the run-up to and culminates at Earth Day, an internationally observed day highlighting the urgent need to stay within the planetary boundaries in which humanity can develop and thrive on this planet. It also coincides with a high-level meeting of environment ministers of European Union (EU) member states.
Stockholm Climate Week seeks to advance climate action by bringing together companies, policymakers, scientists, and civil society and to turn the warning call from the IPCC into positive steps to make 2023 the “year of game-changing climate action” the UN Secretary-General has called for.
The goal of the Exponential Solutions Day is to change the narrative on the energy transformation to a narrative of exponential optimism. We believe that we have the evidence, knowledge, the technology, and the creativity to transition to a sustainable future, and that we can do so in a way that benefits people and the planet. Together, we can create exponential solutions that can transform the way we live, work, and thrive in a sustainable world.
We Don’t Have Time is the world’s largest social network for climate action. Our network connects you with everyone who wants to solve the climate crisis. Read climate news in one place and join the climate dialogue with corporate and governmental leaders. Download our mobile app or sign up on WeDontHaveTime.org
The Exponential Roadmap Initiative brings together innovators, scientists, companies and NGOs which are taking action in line with the 1.5°C ambition, with the mission to halve emissions before 2030 through exponential climate action and solutions.
