Tech’s role in driving green finance on the agenda for Climate Finance Week
Former Unilever CEO Paul Polman, round-the-world sailor Dame Ellen MacArthur and UN Principles for Responsible Investment CEO Fiona Reynolds are among the leading figures on climate action and finance who will be taking part in Climate Finance Week Ireland from 2-6 November.
The AIB-sponsored event will focus on finding sustainable ways to repair the economic damage caused by Covid-19 and explore how Ireland can best finance its transition to a low-carbon economy.
More than 20 virtual events will take place throughout the week. Topics include; environmental, social and governance (ESG) in Europe and Ireland; the new European sustainability disclosure regulations for investment managers; principles for responsible banking; ESG data – the rise of digital technology; addressing the ESG skills challenge in 2021; unlocking financing for biodiversity by private investors; driving decarbonisation through fintech and how Irish companies are accelerating their net zero climate ambitions.
The week will also include climate-themed talks on insurance, banking and investments, interactive workshops and high-impact virtual events attended by senior domestic and international corporate leaders, financiers and key policy makers.
Guest speakers this year include:
- Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
- Geoff Summerhayes, Executive Board Member, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority
- Eric Usher, CEO United Nations Finance Initiative
- Simon Zadek, Sherpa, UN Secretary General’s Task Force on Digital Financing of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Marianne Haher, CEO UN-convened Green Digital Finance Alliance.
The fourth AIB Sustainability Conference will also be held during the week. The virtual event will focus on unlocking the potential of sustainable growth and the opportunities and most pressing challenges facing businesses in the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Climate Finance Week Ireland is organised by Sustainable Nation Ireland as an output of the Dept of Finance’s Ireland for Finance strategy, which recognises sustainable finance as a key opportunity for Ireland.
According to the event organisers, the economic recovery required due to Covid-19 “presents an important opportunity for a paradigm shift in terms of how we think about finance. As Europe’s New Green Deal and Ireland’s Programme for Government make clear, sustainable finance will be a key component of a recovery that will require substantial public and private finance.”
“Now in its third year, Climate Finance Week offers an important platform to showcase concrete Irish sustainable finance public and private activities,” said Stephen Nolan, chairman Climate Finance Week Ireland. “It is in these adverse conditions, that sustainable finance – and the transition to low-carbon economy – will ensure that we build back better.”
“Addressing the climate change crisis is the most important challenge facing this generation, and the role of the financial services industry in supporting the transition to a low carbon economy is central to progress being made,” said AIB CEO Colin Hunt. “At AIB, we have put sustainability at the heart of our business strategy. We believe that many of the changes required to reduce carbon emissions will also have positive economic and societal benefits. Climate Finance Week affords us the opportunity to measure performance, challenge ourselves to do more, and chart a sustainable path forward.”
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