Around one fifth of the world’s 2000 largest public firms have committed to net zero targets in the coming years. Most are pledging to something called climate neutrality by a given date. But do these pledges actually make any difference in the flight against climate change? We here both sides of the argument with climate futurist Alex Steffen based in California, and Simon Glynn, the co-lead on Climate and Sustainability, at the UK management consultants, Oliver Wyman.

(Image: Cooling towers at a coal fueled power station. Credit: Getty Images).

Fergus Nicoll travels to the port of Workington in the north west of England, where he hears from port manager Sven Richards about how small regional ports can make global haulage more sustainable. Blue Line Logistics run a fleet of low emission barges in Belgium and the Netherlands and have plans to expand to the UK and the US. Fergus speaks to the company's founder, Antoon van Coillie. The BBC's Adrienne Murray has been looking into the research and development going into producing 'green fuel' in Copenhagen. Fergus also hears from Yon Sletten, who is developing the Yara Birkeland, a zero emission, autonomous, electric freighter, currently undergoing final sea tests off the coast of Norway. Also in the programme, the efforts of Green Marine, a group of ship owners, ports and shipyards in North America, that has come together to raise the bar for environmental standards in their industry, as their executive David Bolduc explains.

Producer: Russell Newlove.

(Picture: aerial view of a container ship surrounded by green sea. Credit: Getty Images.)

The Amazon is the world's largest rainforest but this crucial carbon sink is facing increased deforestation. Land clearing for mining or agriculture has increased under Brazil's president Jair Bolsanaro. But the world needs the Amazon jungle to keep absorbing carbon if more ambitious climate goals are to be met. Is there a place for the private sector to step in where governments have failed? Vivienne Nunis hears from economist Nat Keohane about a new not-for-profit called Emergent. It acts as a kind of middle man, connecting tropical forests with corporations searching for ways to cancel out their emissions. Can it work? Also on the programme, journalist Karla Mendes explains how many Brazilians feel about the Amazon's plight, while Robert Muggah from the Igarapé Institute tells us companies such as Google have stepped up to help with deforestation mapping, when government agencies had their budgets cut. Producer: Sarah Treanor. Image: A toucan in the Amazon rainforest. Credit: Getty Images

As the Swiss bank Credit Suisse is fined $475m for participating in Mozambique’s tuna bonds fraud, on Business Weekly we find out how the southern African country was devastated by the scandal. Also, we hear how a decaying oil tanker marooned off the coast of Yemen could trigger a major environmental and humanitarian disaster. The SFO Safer is loaded with hundreds of tons of crude oil - so why is it just being left to rot? Plus, we report from a climate conference in Edinburgh where delegates are being encouraged to come up with new ways to cut carbon emissions, including a innovative and surprising diet for cattle. Business Weekly is presented by Lucy Burton and edited by Matthew Davies.

Are the days of the big fat Indian wedding over? Since Covid Indian weddings have got a lot smaller. But will they go back to what they once were? Rahul Tandon speaks to bride to be Yashaswini Singhdeo, mother of the bride Meenal Singhdeo, Sandip Roy author and columnist, Ambika Gupta wedding planner and owner of the A cube project and Parul Bhandari a sociologist from the Indian centre of social sciences and humanities .

(Photo: Indian couple hold hands during a wedding ceremony. Credit: Amir Mukhtar/Getty Images)

The social media giant's algorithm has been accused of amplifying divisive content and disinformation. Could regulating it make Facebook a kinder platform? Ed Butler speaks to the BBC's Silicon Valley correspondent James Clayton about the latest revelations from Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, and renewed demands for a crackdown by US lawmakers. Former Facebook data scientist Roddy Lindsay explains how Facebook's alogrithm became the focus of criticism of the platform, and how a change to the law could solve it. Daphne Keller from Stanford's Cyber Policy Center explains the legal minefield when it comes to regulating what social media users can say, and what platforms can promote, online.

(Photo: Frances Haugen testifies in Congress in October 2021, Credit: Getty Images)

Decaying oil tanker could trigger an environmental and humanitarian disaster. The FSO Safer is marooned off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea, close to one of the world's biggest shipping lanes. A massive oil spill or explosion from it could disrupt global trade for months and lead to an environmental and humanitarian catastrophe. It's loaded with hundreds of tons of crude oil, its hull is rusting and it hasn't moved in years. So why isn't anybody doing anything about it? Nominally the Safer is the property of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government. Right now though, both it and its multi-million dollar cargo are controlled by the Houthi rebels in Yemen. UN officials say the Houthis have broken an agreement to allow an inspection of the vessel. The Saudis accuse them of holding the world to ransom over the potential disaster. The Houthis disagree. Ed Butler speaks to Ghiwa Naket, the executive director of Greenpeace for the Middle East and North Africa, to Ben Huynh a researcher at Stanford University, to Hussain Albukhaiti a Yemeni journalist with close links to the Houthi leadership and to Peter Salisbury, senior analyst for Yemen at the International Crisis Group. (Picture description: Maxar Satellite image of the FSO Safer tanker moored off Ras Issa port, in Yemen. Picture credit: Getty Images)

Is the Western diet ready for farmed insects in food? Although insects are consumed by more than two billion people worldwide, acceptance of them in the Western diet is still low, but could that be changing? With climate change, a growing population and an increased demand for protein all putting pressure on our food system, insects offer an interesting and more planet friendly alternative to meat and fish. Malena Sigurgeirsdottir is the co-founder of Hey Planet which has just launched a meat substitute using buffalo beetle powder (that's the lesser mealworm or Alphitobius Diaperinus), in Denmark, Germany and Sweden. She tells us how great insects taste, especially when they're ground up. Professor Matan Shelomi, from National Taiwan University, Department of Entomology outlines how farming insects can have a much lower carbon foot-print than farming animals. Meanwhile in the UK, Kieran Olivares Whittaker has received millions of dollars in funding for his Entocycle project, researching the optimum way to farm black soldier fly larvae to feed fish and poultry instead of using soy and fishmeal which causes deforestation and overfishing. And we meet Aly Moore of Bugible who makes a living from eating and promoting bugs as a source of protein. Produced and presented by Clare Williamson. (Image credit: HeyPlanet burger; Credit: Hey-Planet.com)

We report from the Countdown summit in Edinburgh where fresh ideas to fight climate change are taking centre stage ahead of the UN climate talks, starting in Glasgow later this month. Vivienne Nunis hears from the business leaders and scientists coming up with new ways to cut carbon emissions in some of the world’s dirtiest industries. Mahendra Singhi is the boss of Dalmia Cement, one of India's biggest cement manufacturers. He tells us how his company plans to become carbon neutral by 2040. In the accessories market, Modern Meadow co-founder Andras Forgacs and CEO Anna Bakst explain how their plant-based leather alternative could shake up fashion supply chains. And what if cows everywhere could be made to emit lower levels of methane when they burp? Biologist Ermias Kebreab says adding seaweed to their diet could be key. Producer: Sarah Treanor Image: A cow chewing cud. Credit: Getty

Millions of people in Afghanistan are living in extreme poverty as prices rise and salaries go unpaid. There are warnings that hunger will follow the devastating drought, just as the cold weather sets in. How will the world respond to calls for help? Business Weekly hears from development economist and former World Bank expert in Afghanistan Dr William Byrd. Plus, as the supply chain gets clogged across the world- we’ll ask how they can be made more resilient? We also hear from Berlin, where voters have said yes to a radical plan to help make housing more affordable. And as William Shatner blasts off into space, we ask if the 90-year-old actor can be called an influencer? Business Weekly is produced by Matthew Davies and presented by Lucy Burton.

As the world turns its attention to addressing climate change, Business Daily is in Edinburgh. We bring you an inside glimpse of the conversations setting the agenda ahead of the UN climate conference COP 26, which starts in Glasgow in just over two weeks. Here in the Scottish capital, the ideas company TED - famous for Ted Talks - is holding its own climate summit, Countdown. It puts CEOs, government ministers, philanthropists and activists all in the same room. Vivienne Nunis hears from Pacific Islander Selina Leem, who explains how her home country, the Marshall Islands, is already dealing with rising sea levels. Jim Snabbe, the chairman of the world's biggest shipping firm, tells us how Maersk plans to move to a new green fuel, while Denmark's energy minister explains his country's plans to vastly scale-up wind power production.

Producer: Sarah Treanor Image: Selina Leem. Credit: Skoll.org

How disruption in a single port, factory or freight centre can cause global chaos. Ed Butler speaks with Stavros Karamperidis, an expert in maritime economics at the University of Plymouth, and Kent Jones, professor of economics at Babson College in the US. Meanwhile, chief economist at Enodo Economics, Diana Choyleva, explains how China's energy crisis will impact exports and the price we pay for goods, and Professor Marc Busch from Georgetown University explains why he thinks governments should leave big businesses to solve supply issues themselves.

(Photo: a container ship is unloaded at a dock in the US. Credit: Reuters)