Climate change is one of the most significant challenges facing our planet today, and it's already having a profound impact on the way businesses operate. Especially physical climate risk with its potential for extreme weather events like hurricanes, flooding, and wildfires that damage infrastructure, and gravely disrupt value chains.

Value chain networks are vast, and when one part of the chain is interrupted, like transportation, it creates immediate trickle-down effects - both in the near and long term. Understanding the complexity of physical climate risk impacts on value chains can be challenging, considering how extensive the networks are.

In a recent Jupiter webinar, our experts discuss the effects that organizations are already seeing across their value chains and how they are approaching climate adaptation strategies. These impacts range from site resilience complications to supplier interruptions, and more immediate risk mitigation initiatives include systematic screening across their production footprint, climate risk assessments for future sites, and supplier resilience screenings.

Here are 3 key points to consider and support value chain climate adaptation and risk mitigation efforts:

1.    Businesses control the timing, not the need for climate adaptation.

Physical climate change and the associated risks are a reality that organizations must tend to. Every business asset today was built for a world that no longer exists. Therefore, your assets are primed for increasing impacts due to the above mentioned extreme weather events. While organizations can’t control these risks, they can control how and when they approach risk mitigation measures. It’s up to the organization to act now and minimize disruption or wait and face potentially catastrophic business losses.

2.    A consistent, global approach to physical climate risk analytics is paramount.

To effectively address these risk factors and create successful risk mitigation strategies, businesses need access to reliable, consistent, actionable physical climate risk analytics. Best-in-science data empowers organizations to understand their climate risk exposure and identify potential vulnerabilities across their value chains - whether on their owned assets or their suppliers’ assets. With this level of insight, businesses can prioritize investments and identify the most effective mitigation strategies.

It’s important to understand that not all physical climate analytics are created equal. By working with a trusted partner, like Jupiter, whose analytics are based on sound scientific models, organizations can be confident that they are making data-driven decisions that will help protect their business long-term.

3.    Extend climate risk analytics beyond your business by working with forward-thinking vendors.

Value chains are complicated webs made up of suppliers, distributors, and customers. To effectively address physical climate risks, businesses need to work with other forward-thinking organizations that share their commitment to sustainability and resilience.

By collaborating with like-minded businesses, organizations can gain a more holistic understanding of the physical climate risks facing their value chains and identify new opportunities to build mitigation strategies together, strengthening the resilience of the entire value chain network. Benefits include optimizing inventory management and avoiding “sole source” supplier risk.

Understanding the complexity of physical climate risk and its effects on value chains is a pressing and immediate need that requires attention, best-in-science analytics and strong partnerships. By building risk mitigation strategies across the extensive value chain network, organizations can build a more sustainable, resilient future for their business.

Keep learning by watching Jupiter's value chain on-demand webinar below.