Building Climate Resilience in Southeast Asia
Businesses worldwide are facing climate risks, and companies with operations or supply chains in Southeast Asia are exposed to a range of climate hazards and vulnerabilities that can exacerbate these risks. To prepare for the effects of climate change, businesses in the region need to build resilience.
Why Read This?
The World Economic Forum reports that the leading threats to businesses today are extreme weather events, natural disasters, and the failure to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Climate volatility can disrupt or damage all aspects of a company’s operations, affecting access to natural resources that are vital for production, infrastructure, and logistics that are essential for a functioning supply chain, and markets for goods and services. Failing to understand and manage climate change properly can impact a business’ strategy, finances, operations, marketing, compliance, and human resources.
It is imperative for the private sector to take a two-pronged approach to climate action:
- To transition to a low-carbon economy, and
- To enhance adaptive capacity in the face of inevitable climate hazards.
There is a persistent attitude that government alone should be responsible for disaster recovery and climate change, but that is not realistic.
The Asia Foundation
Why Businesses Should Invest in Climate Resilience
BSR defines a climate-resilient business as one that can anticipate, absorb, accommodate, and recover from climate hazards in its own operations, throughout its supply chain, and in the communities in which it works.
Building resilience can help a business protect its valuable assets, maintain productivity, and reduce costs. But, the benefits to building resilience extend beyond business continuity and asset protection and link to the broader community and operating context. Every business relies on basic resources and infrastructure to function and needs a thriving economic community to support its operations with essential human, natural, and financial assets.
