Environment
We are engaging with the global challenge to combat climate change and protect the environment
Our actions today will affect future generations, and nowhere is this more evident than in our approach to climate change and the environment.
The insurance industry has a vital role to play using our in depth knowledge of historical weather events to map and understand likely impacts, and providing the financial instruments to enable risks to be pooled and transferred.
Addressing climate change is Aviva's most pressing environmental priority and we are committed to help mitigate the threat and support society to adapt to changes caused by man-made emissions already in the atmosphere. Our climate change strategy has three spheres of focus which we examine in detail in our annual CR report:
- Our sphere of control - reducing operational emissions through our carbon management programme. Our sphere of influence - encouraging sustainable choices among customers, suppliers and the companies we invest in.
- Our sphere of concern - working with external partners to reach consensus on ways forward for companies, policymakers and other stakeholders.
We publish annual group environmental performance data against key indicators and targets covering our CO2 emissions, water and waste consumption. We also report our performance using Accounting for Sustainability's connected reporting framework, which integrates financial and non financial data to provide a comprehensive account of our impacts. Our carbon footprint boundaries provides clarity on the data we include, the emissions we offset and what is excluded from our carbon footprint calculations.
Our actions and commitments
Proactive participation in leading global forums and associations is a key part of our climate change strategy. In 2009 we were involved in the lead-up to the Copenhagen Summit through our membership of working groups of the UNEP Finance Initiative and as signatories to the following:
- The Geneva Association Kyoto Statement
- The UNEP FI Investor Statement on a Global Agreement on Climate Change
- The ClimateWise Statement for Copenhagen
- The Corporate Leaders Group Copenhagen Communiqué.
We are both a signatory and responding company to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), and, in 2009, was ranked eighth in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index for the FTSE350, third in the financial services sector and 38th overall in the FSTE Global 500.
Read more in our latest CR report about our environmental initiatives in our regions:
