CLIMATE AND EARTH
SYSTEM SCIENCES
Photo: UHH/Denstorf
6 December 2022
Photo: private
We are proud to announce the successful MSc thesis presentation of our SICSS member Clara S. Privato
Her thesis "What drives corporate commitment to climate change action? An analysis based on climate change target setting" was supervised by Prof. Timo Busch (Universität Hamburg) and Prof. Alexander Bassen (Universität Hamburg).
Understanding that firms are one of the main actors that contribute to global warming and the importance of corporate responses to tackle the changing climate, Clara investigated why some companies achieve higher levels of commitment to climate action than others. Her research focused on climate change targets set by companies, where she developed six corporate climate commitment levels based on the targets' ambition. Applying qualitative methodology to interviews with company representatives, she identified nine potential drivers that explain the firms' commitment level. Her main outcome pointed out that companies with a higher commitment level have engaged leadership and green human resource management, voluntarily participate in global climate organizations, and pursue collaborations with external stakeholders.
Clara's future plans?
Clara plans to work in the corporate world and help companies to undertake substantive and concrete actions. She aims to work with environmental sustainability focused on corporate responses to climate action.