Among the questions this Tomorrow's Company report asks is if companies are prepared for the scale of the energy revolution in prospect whether the system should be updated to take more account of emerging risks of runaway climate change as well as the widely accepted evidence of global warming - and if so, whether business should be proactive in driving reform? It also looks at what policy frameworks business should work with government to prioritise, so that business can play its full role in building tomorrow's green and clean economy and what the transition to the low-carbon world might cost.

This Briefing Document, by Tomorrow’s Company, summarises some of the frameworks that have been established in various countries to support the transition to green, low-carbon economies.  Whilst each have followed their own path the importance of governments and business working together to establish effective frameworks is shared, as are the positive returns both economically and environmentally that are being generated.  This is not intended to be a comprehensive briefing - rather it provides indicative examples. The Tomorrow's Company Briefing Documents are intended to provide the reader with a comprehensive introduction to a particular topic. You can find the full list of Briefing Documents on forceforgood.com here.

In 2004 Tomorrow's company published a report on what robust  and responsible financial services would look like after comprehensive research and consultation with hundreds of proffessionals working in the city. Restoring Trust has been validated by the financial crisis of 2008 and is still a useful document to provide clear goals.  In many ways, the challenges facing today's policy makers is to get to the system which Restoring Trust sets out. The inquiry is in essence an industry self portrait.  It is based on interviews and workshops conducted with over 500 people drawn from every aspect of the investment chain.  In formulating our proposals we have taken account of a number of government inquiries, industry reviews, trade body and company initiatives.

Bonds are a set of financial products ideally suited to both the financing of long-payback period energy projects and to providing institutional investors with security of returns over the longer term. Climate Bonds are intended to unlock ‘patient capital’: taking savings which require secure returns over long periods of time, such as those held by pension funds, and investing them in low-carbon projects that have high up-front costs but good payback rates over the long term. Climate Bonds need not differ greatly from existing government and corporate bonds, save for their central purpose: the funds they attract are underpinned by real and verifiable energy efficiency and renewable energy projects that in some certifiable manner contribute to the mitigation of climate change. At a minimum this has marketing benefits, allowing investors to report to their members on how their secure investments are also making a contribution to addressing climate change. At a maximum, investors...

Boards are operating in ever more complex and challenging business environments. At the same time, their behaviour and standards are coming under increasing external scrutiny, for example through the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and Walker Reviews in the UK. This publication champions the concept of a ‘mandate’ which sets out the ‘essence’ of the ‘character’ and distinctiveness of the company. We believe that this ‘working charter’ can help boards navigate their way through increasingly choppy waters by facilitating more effective strategic engagement: primarily between executive directors and NEDs to improve board effectiveness, but with the associated benefit that it drives communication externally with the key stakeholders, including investors, government and regulators, and society at large. Accompanying this document is a 'tool-kit' which provides an agenda for board discussions. Please download this here.  A series of case studies illustrating how the board mandate may,...