
COP28: United Nations Climate Change Conference
At the United Nations' 28th annual climate conference, COP28, global leaders, government representatives, businesses, and citizens will come together to address the climate emergency. The conference will be taking place in Dubai, UAE from 30 November – 12 December 2023.
The ambition at COP28 is to renew national climate targets and develop a consensus-based action plan with clear next steps. This year is an important milestone in global negotiations, with the first-ever climate target stocktake slated to conclude during the conference in December.
IKEA at COP28
At IKEA, we believe that, together with our partners and by leading with facts, science, and concrete action, we can use our reach and influence to play a role in accelerating climate action. Inter IKEA will be attending COP28 focusing on the following topics.
Phasing out fossil fuels
It's critical to switch to 100% renewable energy and phase out fossil fuels - the root cause of climate change. We're committed to the phase-out of fossil fuels and have a clear agenda to drastically reduce our emissions across the entire IKEA value chain and to move towards renewable energy.
For example, we have a program supporting suppliers in 13 markets to purchase renewable electricity, including Poland, China and India, who represent three of our largest purchasing countries. During FY22, the share of renewable electricity in production increased to 64% compared to 52% in FY21. A total of 111 additional factories or suppliers achieved 100% renewable electricity. Read more about the renewable energy program here.
We all need to play our part. To encourage further action, we've joined the We Mean Business Coalition's Fossil to Clean campaign in advance of COP28, calling for leaders to set a global target of tripling renewable electricity capacity to at least 11,000 GW and doubling the rate of deployment of energy efficiency by 2030. We will also be openly supporting a complete phase-out of fossil fuels at COP28, helping to encourage countries to increase ambition and set clear targets.

Halting deforestation and scaling up restoration of degraded land
IKEA has long promoted responsible sourcing within our business. We have steered market transformation for key raw materials and continue to use innovative approaches to forest management, protection, restoration, and regeneration. IKEA is committed to no deforestation and no forest degradation across our primary deforestation-linked commodities (soy, palm oil, beef, leather, coffee, cocoa, rubber, wood, and sugarcane), with a target date of December 31, 2025*. All wood used in IKEA products is sourced from responsibly managed forests which do not contribute to deforestation. Read more about our forest positive agenda here.
This year, nature is an overarching topic in focus at COP28. IKEA is assessing our impact and dependency on biodiversity, and is a strong supporter for business taking a holistic approach and more action to protecting and restoring nature.
* commodities and products in scope of the European Union Deforestation-free Regulation will have to meet the corresponding timelines.
Addressing the root causes of air pollution
Air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions often come from the same source and there is a strong connection between the actions needed to reduce emissions. What had been missing for companies is a scientifically robust method that provides the appropriate approaches to measure air pollutant emissions across their value chain.
To address this, Inter IKEA Group, together with Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) and the Climate & Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), developed the first-ever guide for businesses on measuring outdoor air pollution across value chains. During 2023, together with five other businesses, we have tested the methodology developed by SEI and have disclosed our air pollution inventory. During FY24, we are refining the data and assessing the already existing climate mitigation scenarios to identify gaps where we could strengthen our commitments to help reduce air pollution. At COP we will continue to promote the guide and its further development.

Our circular and climate agenda
The IKEA vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. In today’s world, this means drastically reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and transforming into a circular business.
In our FY22 Sustainability Report and Climate Report we announced important achievements towards the IKEA sustainability commitments for 2030. The trend of decreasing the IKEA climate footprint in relation to the baseline year FY16 continued with a 12% reduction in absolute terms compared to baseline year FY16 and a 20% decrease in relative terms (vs produced volumes).
The journey at IKEA continues, with some key movements:
- Our main priority is drastically reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the IKEA value chain. We will reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the value chain in absolute terms by at least 50% by FY30 compared to baseline FY16 and at least 90% latest FY50.
- Using 100% renewable electricity across the IKEA value chain is an important part of our commitment to drastically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Read more here.
- We are committed to transforming into a circular business by 2030, aiming to use only renewable and recycled materials. Read more here.
- Our ambition is to inspire and enable people to live healthier and more sustainable lives, making it affordable and attractive. Read more here.
- As a large user of wood, we have a responsibility and an opportunity to positively influence how wood is sourced. In FY22, 99.9% of the wood used by IKEA was from more sustainable sources (FSC-certified or recycled). Read more about the IKEA 2030 Forest Positive Agenda to enhance biodiversity, support livelihoods, and mitigate climate change here.
- Read more in the FY22 IKEA Sustainability Report here and Climate report here.