The first Earth Day was commemorated on April 22, 1970, as a way of raising awareness around the importance of environmental conservation.
Since that pivotal day in world history, Earth Day has become a movement that represents a growing call to action for global citizens everywhere, to work together in safeguarding our planet and building a sustainable future.
Businesses, both big and small, have an imperative role to play in taking up this mantle and promoting a people- and planet-first philosophy at every level of the workplace and to extend the impact into homes and communities.
The call for green funding
The belief that only large corporates and enterprises can make a meaningful impact on the environment and broader society is a common misconception.
Thousands of small businesses across the country demonstrate every day that every step towards a sustainable future contributes to the bigger picture.
In this regard, access to finance plays a key role in opening the market to small businesses and giving them the support needed to participate more proactively in the green economy.
The World Bank estimates that close to $1.4 billion (R26.7bn) is needed to achieve South Africa’s climate mitigation goals and a further $308bn is needed for climate adaptation.
The pressing need represents an unmatched opportunity for investors and financiers to enter the market to provide finance to business owners who believe in the potential of the green economy.
Making the transition to a more climate-resilient country holds invaluable opportunities for job creation, infrastructure revitalisation, business growth and economic stimulus. To this point, the International Finance Corporation predicts that investment opportunity for climate-related business in South Africa will reach almost $560bn by 2030.
The South African government has made inroads into supporting the important cause, with the introduction of one of the world’s first Green Finance Taxonomy – a formal classification system that defines the minimum set of assets, projects, activities and sectors that are eligible to be defined as “green”.
It’s incumbent on industry stakeholders, traditional lenders and independent financiers to match the state-level efforts with products and services that are geared to supporting this drive.
The future will undoubtedly see the rise of more tailored funding programmes for businesses that share this value system.
An example of these kinds of initiatives is the Business Partners Ltd’s Green Buildings Finance Programme. It provides successful SME applicants with up to 100% property finance, ranging from R500 000 to R50 million, to build, buy or retrofit green buildings either as business premises, warehouses, hotels, educational facilities or even retail developments.
These kinds of interventions at a funding level, will play a key role in giving the SME ecosystem the boost it needs to enter the market for sustainable business and, ultimately, make its contribution to helping South Africa work towards carbon neutrality.
In celebration of Earth Day, we’d also like to put the spotlight on these three outstanding South African businesses:
Owner and author Tanya van Rees initiated South Africa’s first educational and plantable children’s storybook, along with a food and education garden programme, while also obtaining qualifications as a nutritionist adviser.
Van Rees is a committed advocate for humanitarian causes and environmental stewardship.
She believes in the power of responsible business practices to benefit communities and protect the environment. Authentic Roots draws inspiration from nature and the philosophy of living consciously and collaboratively.
Ben Bierman is a managing director at Business Partners Limited. The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Southern African Times or of title sites
