ABSTRACT
The agreement that came out of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, the Copenhagen Accord, simply asks countries to make voluntary emissions reduction commitments as they see fit. In the lexicon of climate change, 'mitigation' refers to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. Climate change adaptation can be thought of in terms of risk assessment and adaptive management. Climate change adaptation means taking action to avoid or minimise the potential harm from climate change impacts. When undertaking climate change adaptation assessment, a distinction is made between impacts and vulnerabilities. Factoring in climate change-related risk is therefore readily mainstreamed into business practice. Climate change can directly affect commercial operations depending on the type of business. While the business opportunities arising from mitigation are, perhaps, more obvious given the growing carbon economy, adaptation will increasingly present opportunities as well as risks for the business sector.
