by Samantha Calvey

​COP26 has laid the foundations for a more stable future but if the climate crisis has taught us anything, it’s that a collaborative approach is fundamental for skyrocketing success in sustainability.  

While governments and policy makers get to grips with understanding what is expected of them, in order to steer towards reaching the Paris Agreement goal, the onus is on everyone across the globe to play their part. 

​Four of the world’s five largest car manufacturers have not signed a deal to eliminate new car emissions by 2040.

The offending quartet - Volkswagen, Toyota, the Renault-Nissan alliance, and Hyundai-Kia – have not showed their support to the pledge which is to be announced at COP26 today, despite months of pressure from the UK.

By signing the agreement, the signatories have pledged to end the sale of new cars that produce emissions in “leading markets” by 2035, and globally by 2040.

Behind the scenes of the impactful roles we place, the teams we build, our dedication to tackling climate change and sustainability challenges, is our ever-growing and passionate team. In our ongoing ‘Faces of Acre’ series, we want to shine a spotlight on the people who make up the Acre team and give our employees a platform to share their passions, speak up on important topics and talk about the pro bono work they take part in.   ​

Like so many others in the wake of the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (or COP26 as we know it), I'm doing my best to digest the outcomes. 

The ‘should haves’ and ‘could haves’ need to be put on hold for now, in favour of facing the future head-on and focusing on what we can do to mitigate further damage to the planet. 

I attended COP26 in the first week with other Acre representatives and was honoured to be present at something so monumental and potentially transformative. But now in the aftermath, my feelings are mixed.