Dear
Readers,
The figures published by the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service in November 2024 ahead of the World Climate Conference in Baku are alarming: they suggest that 2024 is “virtually certain” to be the warmest year since records began. Copernicus predicts that the average temperature worldwide this year could be at least 1.55 °C above the pre-industrial average. This will be the first time that the 1.5 °C target formulated at the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in Paris has been exceeded. There are also warnings from the UN Environment Programme of a 2.9 °C increase in the global average temperature by 2100. The Baku conference has made it clear that efforts to combat climate change must be significantly stepped up and the entire global community is committed to doing so.
DEKRA takes this responsibility very seriously and, as the world’s largest non-listed testing, inspection and certification company, we set strategic priorities years ago. Specifically, we are committed to the principles of the UN Global Compact and align our activities more than ever with the universal principles of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this context, we are naturally addressing the specific challenges of our own business operations, working to minimize our footprint across all areas, and developing innovative solutions. At the same time, we support our clients on their journey toward greater sustainability with over 500 sustainability services.
The fact that DEKRA was awarded the highest “Platinum” rating by EcoVadis for the fourth consecutive year in 2024, placing us among the top 1 percent of companies assessed, once again underlines both our ambition and success of the measures we have taken. In the coming years, we will continue to pursue and intensify the decarbonization of our activities. A key component of this is our new DELRA Climate Impact program, which focuses on our actual impact on the climate, and underpins our continued commitment to 1.5 °C target set out in the Paris Agreement.
In the following, we are pleased to present to you our sustainability strategy, recent developments and progress, as well as exemplary measures and sustainability services in more detail. We invite you to join us on our sustainability journey through this magazine.
The DEKRA Management Board
