AkzoNobel recently announced that its commitment to setting science-based sustainability targets has been officially validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), confirming its status as the first paints and coatings company to receive this endorsement. The original announcement was made in July, when AkzoNobel followed up on its commitment to setting science-based sustainability targets by announcing carbon reduction targets for the full value chain.

“We’re proud to be the first company in our industry to receive SBTi approval for our carbon reduction target,” said CEO Thierry Vanlancker. “It’s a clear signal that we’re committed to taking stronger action to tackle climate change and will be an enormous innovation driver for what we do in our supply chain and with our customers. It means we’ve aligned our own sustainability ambitions with the Paris agreement, which aims to limit global warming and ensure that global temperature rise doesn’t exceed 1.5˚C above pre-industrial levels.” 

The company has also restated its 42% carbon reduction target (baseline 2020) across the whole value chain. It has now been increased to 50% by 2030 (baseline 2018). This brings it in line with the company’s carbon reduction ambition in its own operations and will further sharpen and accelerate the company’s vision for its own “People. Planet. Paint.” approach to sustainable business.

“Successfully combating the impact of climate change is everyone’s responsibility,” Vanlancker said. “So we have to work with all our value chain partners to transition to lower/zero carbon alternatives. I also encourage our peers to commit to the SBTi by announcing their own targets and join us in setting the right example in our industry.”

For more information, visit www.akzonobel.com/en/about-us/sustainability and https://sciencebasedtargets.org.