{"query_echo":{"q":"","filters":{"analysis_type":["corporate performance review"]},"warnings":[{"code":"facet_value_not_in_vocabulary","message":"Value 'corporate performance review' for facet 'analysis_type' is not in the controlled vocabulary."}]},"total":{"value":1,"relation":"eq"},"page":1,"page_size":20,"self":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/api/v1/search?analysis_type=corporate+performance+review","stability":"beta","ai_marking":{"digital_source_type":{"uri":"http://cv.iptc.org/newscodes/digitalsourcetype/trainedAlgorithmicMedia","name":"Created using Generative AI"},"notice":"Summary and key insights are generated using artificial intelligence."},"results":[{"id":"wmbco-000288","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/wmbco-000288","title":"The Climate Has Changed","publisher":{"name":"We Mean Business Coalition","organization":"we-mean-business-coalition"},"document_type":"report","language":"en","date_published":null,"source_url":"https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Climate-Has-Changed_3.pdf","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","geography_discussed","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"Based on data from 1,763 companies, the report shows that low-carbon investments, particularly in energy efficiency and renewables, can deliver significant internal rates of return (IRR). It highlights that 'forward-thinking' companies—those aligning targets with climate science—outperform peers financially. However, it notes that most corporate targets remain insufficient to meet the 2°C global temperature rise limit, calling for stable, long-term policy frameworks to incentivize more expensive, transformational decarbonization.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"Low-carbon investments can yield high financial returns, with an average internal rate of return (IRR) of 27% for forward-thinking companies that align their targets with climate science and reduced emissions intensity between 2012 and 2013.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Process energy efficiency is a highly profitable low-carbon action, with an average global IRR of 23%, reaching 81% in the United States and 46% in South Africa.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Between 2012 and 2013, approximately 1,450 companies invested over US$170 billion in low-carbon projects, resulting in annual carbon savings of more than 420 million metric tonnes of CO2e.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Most companies are not setting carbon reduction targets that align with the scientific requirements to limit global temperature rise to 2°C.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-4","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"In the European Union, stringent regulations have driven higher carbon returns per dollar invested compared to the US, although financial returns (IRR) are lower because 'easy-win' efficiency options have already been exhausted.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-5","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Renewable energy investments provide the highest level of global emissions reductions, with industrial sectors seeing an average return of 22% and finance/retail sectors seeing a 29% IRR for installations like rooftop solar.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-6","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Simple behavioral changes, such as switching off lights and computers, offer high returns on investment, with companies reporting an average IRR of 88% and savings of 2.7 million tonnes of CO2e.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-7","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Companies in emerging economies, specifically India and South Africa, are achieving strong financial and carbon returns because they can utilize proven technologies to achieve reductions.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-8","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"To accelerate the transition, the report argues that businesses should adopt a 'balanced' portfolio approach, combining high-IRR projects with high-carbon-return projects that may have longer payback periods.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-9","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The report calls for policymakers to provide long-term certainty and 'carrots and sticks,' including the elimination of high-carbon energy subsidies and the implementation of meaningful carbon pricing.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"wmbco-000288#insight-10","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["low-carbon economy","energy efficiency","renewable energy","carbon price","carbon capture and storage","electric vehicle","greenhouse gas emissions","carbon neutrality","climate finance","corporate sustainability","energy transition","Industrial decarbonization","building performance"],"geography_discussed":["European Union","United States","India","South Africa","Brazil","People's Republic of China"],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["financial analysis","policy assessment","corporate performance review"]}]}