AN MP from Reading has been awarded the title politician of the year at the ‘green Oscars’.
More than 400 green business leaders, sustainability executives, investors, campaigners, and politicians heard the news at the BusinessGreen Leaders Awards.
The ceremony, held in central London on Wednesday, June 22, aimed to recognise businesses and individuals striving to net zero.
Categories included manufacturer of the year, energy efficiency project of the year, and nature-based project of the year.
In its citation for Mr Sharma, BusinessGreen noted that the Reading West MP and COP26 president had been “moved to tears” by the commitment to create the Glasgow Climate Pact, which it hoped would lay the foundations for the next critical phase of global decarbonisation efforts.
“Thanks to a genuinely remarkable feat of diplomacy, (Mr Sharma) helped signal to the world that the commitment to global climate action is stronger than it has ever been and delivered an agreement that many independent observers agree was as good as it could possibly have been,” the citation reads.
“Throughout his stewardship of the COP26 he repeatedly helped showcase how the technologies and business models we need to build a net zero emission economy are both ready for mainstream adoption and hold the key to a new era of genuinely sustainable development.”
Mr Sharma was unable to attend the awards ceremony as he was in Rwanda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, continuing with his COP26 role, but instead delivered a video message to thank the team for his award, saying he was humbled to be recognised in this way.
“I also want to thank all of you who were with us in Glasgow, pushing us to go further inside the negotiating rooms and bringing forward your own commitments outside the negotiating rooms as well,” he said.
“What we achieved together was significant and the Glasgow Climate Pact was a historic agreement forged among almost 200 nations. Based on the commitments made at COP26 we were able to say with credibility that we have kept alive the prospect of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
“But as I said at the time, the pulse of 1.5°C remains weak and it’ll only be strengthened if countries and companies deliver on their commitments. That is the key focus of the UK’s COP26 Presidency this year – implementation, implementation, implementation.”
He added: “I look forward to continuing to work with you all on the road to COP27 as we collectively push to turn commitments into action.”
