From speaking to public sector organisations, it’s clear that there is a high level of awareness of the need to be moving forward on the governance of climate obligations, but mixed levels of understanding of how this can be done.
The governance oversight of climate obligations at Board and committee level is not, in theory, any more difficult than governance oversight of anything else. However, the integration of climate obligations into a public sector organisation’s strategy and the elaboration of that strategy into a plan is complex. It requires an understanding of those obligations and the capacity to apply that understanding to the business of the organisation.
With indications that Board oversight of public sector climate obligations will be incorporated into the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies, we are preparing some materials to support this development. Understanding what Board oversight will look like is of course only part of the picture, but in identifying the questions that the Board will need to ask to assure itself in this area, there are opportunities to reflect on corresponding executive actions. The dialogue between the Board and executive as to what those actions look like, how they connect to strategy, and what resources and expertise will be needed to fulfil them, has the capacity to incrementally develop climate governance, in a sector that is expected to influence and demonstrate leadership.
As part of our ongoing governance podcast series, an initial set of three Public Sector Climate Governance podcasts are currently being produced which will discuss these and other issues. They will focus on the public sector’s climate policy obligations; on some of the things the Board needs to consider in terms of climate governance; and on implementation actions for consideration by the Board and the executive.
The podcasts will be published on this site in April and May 2025.
