WBCSD and State of Green announce partnership to explore and internationalize new approaches to public-private collaboration 

Wednesday 13 November, 2024:  The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and State of Green today announced their intention to work together to develop new approaches and best practices in public-private collaboration to accelerate sustainable transitions.

At COP29 in the Danish Pavilion, WBCSD and State of Green announced their intention to collaborate on a series of knowledge exchange activities for their respective memberships in the next 24 months. Both organizations will aim to explore key success factors from the Danish Government’s Climate Partnerships model and apply the lessons learned to inform the development of public-private collaborations with companies and governments in other regions of the world to implement the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

State of Green is a not-for-profit, public-private partnership between the Danish Government and Denmark’s three leading business organisations responsible for facilitating the Danish Government’s Climate Partnerships. The 14 Climate Partnerships have developed over 400 policy recommendations, coupled with action priorities for business and finance, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Denmark by 70 per cent by 2030 and accelerate the country’s transition to a sustainable, low-carbon, resource efficient society.  A number of the policy recommendations developed by the partnerships are now being drafted as legislation in the Danish Parliament.

WBCSD is a global community that represents the world’s leading businesses. WBCSD works with its member companies and partners to limit the climate crisis, restore nature, and tackle inequality. WBCSD has been working its member companies, governments and financial institutions on public-private collaborations that align these actors on shared missions that will enable co-investment to accelerate the transition, such as the Zero Emission Vehicles – Emerging Markets Initiative in India, Brazil and Mexico.

Our member companies depend on systemic transformations in global value chains to achieve the targets outlined in their corporate transition plans. They want to work closely with governments and investors to put in place the policies, business actions, and financial incentives to achieve these transformations. The Danish Climate Partnerships have demonstrated the power of dynamic collaborative efforts that bring together the public and private sectors to accelerate action by all actors.

We are looking forward to working closely with State of Green over the next two years to explore the lessons our global membership can learn from the Danish Government’s Climate Partnerships and how they can inform our work with our member companies and global network partners to develop innovative and new public-private collaborations in other regions of the world that tackle climate change, restore nature and reduce inequality. 

Jennie Dodson, Senior Director of Policy, Advocacy & Member Mobilization at WBCSD

We are very pleased to enter this partnership with WBCSD to further promote the experiences with the Danish Climate Partnerships. Danish companies and pension funds are globally recognised for their innovative approach to solutions and investments, as well as their strong belief in the strengths of public-private partnerships. Co-creation between business and industry, government, and academia and vested interests has been a hallmark of Denmark for decades and a key driver for our green transition.

Finn Mortensen, Executive Director at State of Green