As COP28 wraps, talking progress with GM’s Chief Sustainability Officer

Dec 13, 2023

The ESG Insider podcast covers the recent conclusion of COP28 and focuses on the transportation sector's challenges in decarbonization. They interview Kristen Siemen, Chief Sustainability Officer of General Motors, who emphasizes the importance of partnerships, innovation, and concrete solutions to drive progress. The podcast discusses General Motors' sustainability initiatives, successful collaborations for sustainable development, challenges in transitioning to an all-electric future, and the importance of collaboration and innovation in fighting climate change.

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Introduction

00:00 • 3min

General Motors' Sustainability Initiatives and Goals

03:28 • 4min

Effective Collaboration for Sustainable Development

07:47 • 2min

Challenges in Transitioning to an All-Electric Future

09:20 • 2min

Hopes, Collaboration, and Building Blocks

11:19 • 4min

In recent episodes of the ESG Insider podcast, we’ve been on the ground in Dubai covering COP28, the UN’s 2023 climate change conference. As the conference wrapped up Dec. 13 with an agreement on the first global stocktake, we’re covering some of the big themes from the gathering — including how the transport sector is approaching decarbonization challenges.

Passenger vehicles, a key part of the transport sector, contribute a substantial 16% to global greenhouse gas emissions. To learn more about how this sector is approaching sustainability, we sat down on the sidelines of COP28 with Kristen Siemen, the Chief Sustainability Officer of one of the world’s largest automakers, General Motors.

Kristen talks about the importance of partnerships; the role of innovation in addressing the climate crisis; and the importance of concrete solutions to drive progress.

“We’re past the point where we’re all making these big bold goals and announcements,” she says. “Now it’s about: what are the building blocks and the steps that we can take toward making progress?”

Read the research from S&P Global Mobility here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/insights/featured/special-editorial/how-automaker-decarbonization-efforts-can-reach-paris-agreement-targets

Listen to our interview with UPS Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer Laura Lane here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/podcasts/women-in-leadership-why-ups-head-of-sustainability-says-you-don-t-need-a-title-to-lead

This piece was published by S&P Global Sustainable1, a part of S&P Global.

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