Global Compact, United Nations to accelerate Thailand’s business leadership on climate action

Bangkok, Thailand – The Global Compact Network in Thailand, in partnership with the United Nations in Thailand is organizing the GCNT Forum, which brings together a broad range of delegates to discuss strategies on maximizing the positive contribution of business to Thailand’s climate leadership and chart a path to a more inclusive future.

With the theme ‘Thailand’s Climate Leadership Summit 2021: A New Era of Accelerated Actions’, this year’s event will focus on the role private sector leadership can play to move towards carbon neutrality in Thailand against the grim backdrop of the climate crisis. General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand, will deliver opening remarks.

Thanyaporn Krichtitayawuth, Executive Director at GCNT, said that climate change is a more serious threat to humanity than the COVID-19 crisis, which may eventually disappear. Climate change is one of the most pressing and challenging issues in sustainable development as has been confirmed by recent scientific reports. Our world is experiencing worsening global warming: intense wildfires, rising sea levels, melting Polar ice caps and reduced snowfall all culminating in the year 2020 being the world’s warmest year on record.

The central objective of the Paris Agreement is to hold the increase in global average temperatures to 1.5-degree Celsius from pre-industrial levels. Despite this, the year 2020 saw a 1.2-degree Celsius of warming, pointing to the severity of the current situation. The former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said: “There is no Plan B because there is no Planet B” – all this means we must take serious action now to preserve tomorrow as there is no spare planet.

Normally held in Bangkok, the Forum this year is virtual, with more than 70 GCNT members, private sector organizations and stakeholders in Thailand mobilized to work together through a “solutions-oriented” approach to mitigate the climate challenge. At the same time, they will take stock of progress made towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country since last year’s forum, focusing on responsible business commitments and the role Thai private sector can play in charting the next steps to address climate change.

The opening segment will be chaired by high-level delegates including General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand; H.E. Varawut Silpa-archa, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Thailand; Sanda Ojiambo, CEO and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact; Suphachai Chearavanont, Chairperson of GCNT; Gita Sabharwal, UN Resident Coordinator in Thailand; Dr. Pakorn Peetathawatchai, President of Stock Exchange of Thailand; and Ruenvadee Suwanmongkol, Secretary-General, Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand.

Leading companies in Thailand which are expected to take part in the event include Charoen Pokphand, HSBC, Huawei Technology, NR Instant Produce, True Corporation, Bangchak Corporation, CP Intertrade, Charoen Pokphand Produce, IRPC, Ek-chai Distribution, Siam Makro, Oklin Thailand, Pranda Jewelry, PTTEP and Krungthai Bank. Representatives from the United Nations will also be speaking at the GCNT Forum, including UNIDO, UNEP, and UNDP.

Registration: Mandatory for all participants including journalists. Click to register: https://gcntforum2021.globalcompact-th.com or scan the QR code (banner above).

When: October 11, 2021 [Event begins at 9.00 am (Bangkok time, GMT+7)]

Where: Online [Zoom]

Social Media: Follow the hashtags #GCNTForum2021 for live updates on our Twitter channels @UNThailand @GCNT_TH

Note to editors:

Global Compact Network Thailand Association (GCNT: Global Compact Network Thailand)

Officially launched in December 2018 by 15 founding members in Thailand, currently has more than 70 members. Global Compact is one of the United Nations' local networks of the main global projects. The UN Global Compact, the largest sustainable development network in the world has campaigns for companies around the world to strategize and adhere to the principles of working that create a sustainable economy, it covers four operations: human rights, labor standards, environment and anti-corruption as well as carry out the activities of the movement of the social goals broadly under the UN Global Compact's ten principles to accomplish the United Nations goals, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

United Nations in Thailand

The United Nations has worked together with the Royal Thai Government and people of Thailand for more than the past fifty years to achieve inclusive and sustainable development in line with national priorities and plans. Comprising of 21 UN agencies, the UN country team in Thailand pursues this objective by carrying out work in close cooperation with the Royal Thai Government, national stakeholders, civil society, academia, private sector, donors and media. The UN in Thailand also work closely with the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)/IGES Regional Collaboration Centre for Asia and the Pacific (RCC Bangkok).