Pandemic Moves Global Community Closer to Reaching Decarbonization Targets

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, awareness is growing globally of the impact weather-related climate events have on communities and the importance of being prepared.

In an interview for The Climate Champions podcast, Jan Vrins, partner and leader of Guidehouse’s Energy, Sustainability, and Infrastructure segment, explains Guidehouse’s vision in helping clients understand the implications of climate change.

“The solution is to think more regionally about a system that is integrated and can deal with these events from a resiliency point of view," Vrins said.

In the podcast, he explains that the pandemic has accelerated the urgency for change. COVID has encouraged the global community to become more efficient and adaptable, as seen through the lens of Guidehouse-led initiatives to mitigate climate change, including the Supplier Leadership on Climate Transition (SLoCT) collaborative, Gas for Climate, and the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF).

Vrins also emphasized that a great deal of impactful technology already exists today. The goal now is to create skill around solutions like renewables, battery storage, and the electrification of transportation and buildings, he said.

“The issues we are trying to solve for our clients are very complex,” Vrins said. “But it starts small, at the individual level—turning down the thermostat, turning off lights, reducing waste. This then translates into what we expect of our governments and corporations.”