8: Drawdown Georgia Business Compact: A Partnership Advancing Collective Action for Climate Mitigation

Now more than ever, climate action requires both private and public investment in building a sustainable future for all. COP26 affirmed the importance of collective action at all scales coupled with supporting public policy to limit global warming to a 1.5-degree trajectory. This chapter outlines the process and building blocks that culminated in the launch of the Drawdown Georgia Business Compact, whose mission is to leverage the collective impact of Georgia’s business community to achieve net zero carbon emissions in the state by 2050. In bringing together companies across diverse industries, the Business Compact creates a community of practice where cross-sector collaboration accelerates Georgia’s path to actualizing COP26’s decarbonization vision while also considering ‘beyond carbon’ issues such as the economy, equity, public health, and the environment. This is a regional and voluntary approach to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17 (Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development), which recognizes multi-stakeholder partnerships as important vehicles to achieve SDGs.