Sustainability LIVE: Net Zero – Henkel’s CSO Keynote
Opening Sustainability LIVE: Net Zero – Ulrike Sapiro, Chief Sustainability Officer at Henkel began her keynote with honour and excitement at being the first to speak at the event.
"I'm super excited and very honoured to be trusted with kicking off these two very intense content-packed days that we'll have on sustainability – in particular Net zero,” said Ulrike.
Current climate challenges
Emphasising the importance of collective discussion and sharing to be successful in addressing urgent climate action, Ulrike starts by discussing the current climate challenges organisations face today.
Key discussion points included the need for urgent action coupled with concerns centred around societal and political obstacles – including populism and geopolitical insecurities hindering global solutions.
"There is no option but to keep going to be persistent and to actually work on this because there is no option to give up,” said Ulrike.
The business impact and economic implications
Reflecting on the gravity of the climate crisis and emphasising the consequences such as soil erosion, droughts, and biodiversity loss, Ulrike argues that climate failure will lead to societal failure impacting economies and businesses negatively.
Presenting economic data on climate-related losses, Ulrike also stresses the financial risk for business, as well as the increasing regulatory pressures. As such it's important to be transparent and report in alignment with sustainability goals and financial performance.
"Action on climate and particularly going for net zero absolutely makes business sense because it is building resilience, it is building supplier and supply chain diversification, and ultimately it makes the business more competitive”, explains Ulrike.
The path to net zero
Ulrike concludes her keynote by emphasising the role of customer demands and supply chain engagement to drive businesses towards achieving their net zero goals. Ulrike advocates for a customised approach for each company to achieve net zero, leveraging unique capabilities and circumstances.
"We are not alone here. These meetings are here to share, to learn, to calibrate, and to reassure yourselves that you are on the right track,” said Ulrike.
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More to come in 2024…
Sustainability Magazine will be hosting a further five events in 2024, both virtual and in-person. Don’t miss out on your chance to hear from leading industry experts at:
- Sustainability LIVE Singapore
- Sustainability LIVE Dubai
- Sustainability LIVE New York
- Sustainability LIVE London
- The Global Sustainability & ESG Awards
To find out more about these events and awards, click here.
Essential diary dates – 2025
- Net Zero & Scope 3 LIVE 2025 | QEII Centre, London | 5-6 March 2025
- Sustainability Singapore Virtual Conference | 19 March 2025
- Sustainability Dubai Virtual Conference | 23 May 2025
- Sustainability LIVE Chicago and Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE Chicago | 4-5 June
- Sustainability LIVE & Sustainability Awards 2025 | BDC, London | 9-10 September 2025
- NEW | ClimateTech Magazine
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