The roundtable was established by twenty-three leading international businesses with the assistance of G8 President and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair, to co-operatively engage in a global plan of action.
The group devised a Framework for Action which called for technology incentive programs, the establishment of common metrics,[4] for example in energy efficiency, and the expansion of emissions trading schemes.
[5] Friends of the Earth noted that the roundtable represented a major shift by the business community towards efforts to mitigate climate change.
Through market based solutions such as carbon trading, the Roundtable established a policy framework which now encompasses 150 businesses across the globe.
The framework was meant to not only mitigate climate change but also promote sustainable development by addressing issues of poverty, energy and economic growth in emerging markets.