Name: Aligning finance for the net zero economy: new ideas from leading thinkers
Start: 2021-02-09T14:00:00Z
End: 2021-02-09T14:01:15.000Z
Location: BrightTALK
Rating: 4.56

United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a partnership between United Nations Environment and the global financial sector created in the wake of the 1992 Earth Summit with a mission to promote sustainable finance. More than 240 financial institutions, including banks, insurers, and investors, work with UN Environment to understand today’s environmental, social and governance challenges, why they matter to finance, and how to actively participate in addressing them.

UNEP FI’s work also includes a strong focus on policy – by facilitating country-level dialogues between finance practitioners, supervisors, regulators and policy-makers, and, at the international level, by promoting financial sector involvement in processes such as the global climate negotiations.

This webinar will explore how well-designed taxonomies can accelerate capital flows towards climate-resilient projects. It will examine global and regional approaches, practical lessons from implementation, and how taxonomies can support financial institutions and policymakers in making adaptation finance a mainstream practice. 

Designed for finance professionals, policymakers, and sustainability practitioners, this session will provide actionable insights into leveraging sustainable finance taxonomies as a catalyst for scaling adaptation finance. 

This webinar series is part of the Climate Adaptation Innovation Learning project (CAIL). CAIL is financed by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by UNIDO, in partnership with Climate KIC, Global Adaptation & Resilience Investment Working Group (GARI), and UNEP FI. We are developing a unique knowledge platform for climate adaptation - a hub to drive innovation and boost private sector engagement.

The role of sustainable finance taxonomies in scaling adaptation finance

This webinar presents a new UNEP FI policy brief titled “Greening the Chinese Banking System: A Policy and Regulatory Landscape Analysis”. 

A conducive policy and regulatory enabling environment is widely recognized as essential for mobilizing large-scale green investment. China offers a particularly illustrative case. With policy support, regulatory requirements, and financial incentives, China’s banking sector has emerged as a powerhouse for the country’s green transition, channeling capital into environmental protection, energy transition, sustainable transport, and other sectors. China has mobilized some of the world’s largest volumes of green investment and has developed highly advanced green tech supply chains. What factors have enabled these outcomes, and how should China’s green finance architecture be understood in light of its broader policy, industrial, and financial ecosystem? Are there elements of China’s experience that may offer constructive insights for other countries, particularly those seeking to scale green investment while responding to national priorities and development contexts?

With policy support, regulatory requirements, and financial incentives, China’s banking sector has emerged as a powerhouse for the country’s green transition, channeling capital into environmental protection, energy transition, sustainable transport, and other sectors. The new brief explores the policy, regulatory, and enabling environment China has fostered that have enabled it to mobilize some of the world’s largest volumes of green investment and develop advanced green tech supply chains. 

A presentation of findings and conclusions by lead author Shouqing Zhu will be followed by a discussion of developments and trends in China and the EU and potential areas of collaboration with leading experts who have been active in greening China’s financial system and have served as technical expert reviewers for the development of the brief.

Greening the Chinese banking system: A policy and regulatory landscape analysis

Financial institutions increasingly recognize the urgency of investing in climate adaptation and resilience, but many still struggle to measure, track, and credibly demonstrate their impact. To address this challenge, UNEP FI is launching the Adaptation & Resilience Impact Metrics Toolkit.  

Join this webinar to discover the new framework and understand how it supports decision-making across risk management, compliance, product innovation, and capital allocation. The toolkit, available as both an excel file and a web app and downloaded alongside an explanatory word document, is designed to help financial institutions assess, track, and report their adaptation and resilience outputs, outcomes, and impacts. This provides the quantitative foundation for compliance, enabling institutions to demonstrate and report how they identify and manage physical climate risks effectively. 

The toolkit provides a clear pathway from financial inputs to real resilience benefits and includes flexible, institution-specific modules tailored to the needs of commercial banks, development finance institutions, insurers, and asset managers. 

Join us for this webinar to: 

- See a live demo of the tools, indicator library and templates. 
- Learn how the toolkit strengthens the business case for adaptation, enhances transparency, and supports regulatory and investor expectations. 
- Explore how your institution can start using the toolkit, which will be available on the UNEP FI website from 11 December 2025.

Demonstrate impact of climate adaptation and resilience investments: A new toolkit for banks, insurers and investors

The CID is the new flagship EU industrial policy initiative introduced by the European Commission on 26 February 2025. It is aimed at decarbonizing industries, fostering clean technology innovation, sustainable manufacturing, and circular business models, while enhancing global industrial competitiveness.

This session will explore some critical themes prioritized within the CID and the financing mechanisms supporting it, such as the Industrial Decarbonisation Bank, with insights from the European Commission. In addition, financial institutions and industry associations will share their perspectives on the package.

Speakers include: 
- Stefanie Hiesinger. Head of Unit CLIMA.C.2 – Low Carbon Solutions: Research and Low Carbon Technology Deployment at the European Commission 
- Robert Spruijt. ING, Head Sustainable Solutions Group EMEA 
- Thorbjorn Lundholm Dahl. Danske bank, Deputy Head of Group Sustainability 
- Carlos Bravo Navarro. European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC)

Financing the Clean Industrial Deal

In celebration of International Human Rights Day, this webinar brings together voices from financial institutions, civil society, international organizations, trade unions, and academia to explore how climate action and respect for human rights can, and must, go hand in hand. 

In July 2025, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a landmark advisory opinion affirming that the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment stems from the interdependence between human rights and environmental protection. This means that climate action, encompassing all efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change, is a cornerstone of the human right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. 

In recent years, the message has grown louder and clearer: without inclusion and respect for human rights, there can be no just transition to sustainable societies. As financial institutions increasingly recognize this connection, the challenge now lies in translating principles into concrete action across governance, policy, risk management, and impact. Building on recent resources such as the UNEP FI Human Rights Toolkit, this session will offer practical guidance and real-world examples to help financial institutions integrate human rights into their climate strategies, advance a just transition, and deliver positive outcomes for people and planet.

Speakers:
- Angela Asuncion, Senior Advisor on Transition Minerals and Just Energy Transition, Bantay Kita Inc.
- Fernanda Hopenhaym, United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights
- Jessica Wan, Social Lead, Redwheel
- Joana Pedro, Social and Human Rights Lead, UNEP FI
- Paloma Muñoz Quick, Human Rights Standards Director, BSR
- Moderator: Magdalena Garcia Elorrio, Social Specialist and Project Coordinator, UNEP FI

Climate action and human rights: Practical pathways for financial institutions

Regional policymakers will reflect on the region's implementation of sustainable finance policies, with a focus on the LAC region's alignment and implementation of ISSB IFRS S1 and S2 standards.

Speakers will discuss  implications for the region and interoperability with European Sustainability Reporting Standards and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards.

Speakers include: 
-  Andrea Pradilla, Global Reporting Initiative 
- Jonathan Bravo, IFRS Foundation
-  Artuto Rodríguez, IFRS Foundation
-  Evie Robertson, IFRS Foundation

This session is part of a series on the state of play of corporate sustainability standards and implementation across jurisdictions, through UNEP FI's Regulatory Implementation Support Programme. The series includes public and members-only sessions on timely topics related to ISSB, GRI, CSRD/ESRS, their interconnections as well as other relevant frameworks including prudential matters, and have both globally and regionally focused webinars.

Regional Implementation of Sustainability Reporting Standards in LAC

How can banks and insurers finance efforts to support societies, economies and ecosystems in adapting to climate change? And why should they closely consider nature when managing climate and financial risk? 

Join our webinar to explore real-world case studies that reveal:
Understanding risk feedback loops: How climate impacts on nature, such as ecosystem degradation, can increase financial and physical risks — and vice versa. 
Avoiding maladaptation: How to prevent well-intentioned adaptation projects from unintentionally increasing long-term vulnerability. 
Capturing co-benefits: How nature-based approaches to adaptation can deliver multiple benefits, such as protecting biodiversity and strengthening resilience. 

This introductory session is designed for sustainability and ESG professionals at banks, insurers, and other financial institutions, as well as stakeholders beginning to explore the links between climate adaptation and nature.

The interlinkages between climate adaptation and nature: An introduction for financial institutions

This session is co-hosted with the OECD Environment Directorate. It  will clarify the importance of tackling water-related risks in the current context of climate change, and its implications for financial institutions and their risk management practices.

Speakers will discuss current practices within the supervisory landscape on water-risk management by central banks and the importance of including and strengthening water-related indicators in supervisory frameworks. 

Speakers include: 
- Lylah Davies, OECD
- Marie Gabet, Network for Greening the Financial System 
- Professor Nicola Ranger, London School of Economics and Political Science
- Sarah Amorim Torres of Banco Central do Brasil

The session will also look at UNEP FI's water-related materials and how financial institutions can manage their water risks.

Regulatory Implementation of Water Risks in Prudential Frameworks

Join the PSI Working Group for Nature for a webinar presenting its two-part report series, "Rooted in Risk: Framing nature-related assessments for insurers" and "Breaking Ground: Getting practical with nature-related assessments for insurers". Together, these reports provide initial insights for insurers on undertaking nature-related assessments within underwriting portfolios. 

The session will introduce key concepts and definitions on nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities (DIROs), and show how they apply across non-life and life & health lines of business. Participants will hear from insurers and technical experts on why nature assessments matter, how to use the reports in practice, and how to turn emerging insight into action across the insurance value chain. 

Breaking Ground will officially launch at the UNEP FI Regional Roundtable for Europe on October 28–29, 2025.

Nature Uncovered for Insurers: Making Nature Visible and Actionable for Insurers

This session will provide governments, financial institutions, businesses, and civil society with practical insights to align financial flows and trade in critical energy transition minerals with sustainability, equity, and accountability principles — ensuring protection of the environment and people, particularly indigenous communities.  

The transition to a low-carbon energy future is not optional; it is the foundation of the global response to climate change. At the heart of this transformation lie critical energy transition minerals — essential for producing, storing, and using clean energy. Yet, meeting the rapidly rising demand for these minerals presents a dual challenge: while demand is surging, the prevailing mining models risk causing severe social and environmental harm. 

Addressing this tension requires a new approach, one that reduces demand through circular solutions and sustainable models across the entire value chain. This session will explore how guidance can be translated into action, highlight best practices and case studies, and examine the policies, mandates, and accountability frameworks needed to foster equitable finance in the minerals sector to protect ecosystems and communities.

Speakers:
- Prof. Paul Ekins, Professor of Resources and Environment Policy at University College London
- Wen-Yu, Critical Minerals Lead, Ellen MacArthur Foundation
- Shanning Dong, Chief Sustainability Officer, Bank of Jiangsu
- Dylan Boss, Senior Policy Advisor, Ministry of Infrasrtucture and Water Management, Government of the Netherlands
- Peggy Lefort, Pollution & Circular Economy Lead, UNEP FI

Moderator: Kavita Sachwani, PRB Implementation Coordinator, UNEP FI

Financing a Just and Circular Future for Critical Energy Transition Minerals

Circular economy is the missing link in climate action. With half of global emissions linked to material use, integrating circular strategies into finance and the real economy is essential to achieving net-zero, nature-positive, and just transition goals. 

At COP30, where the urgency to scale mitigation and adaptation efforts is greater than ever, embedding circularity into financial systems and real economy strategies offers a concrete pathway to accelerate progress. This session will explore how responsible banking, global frameworks, and real-economy leadership can align to drive circular solutions—bridging climate, nature, and economic agendas to deliver measurable impact.  

Financial institutions, policymakers, and businesses all have a critical role to play in integrating circular economy principles into transition plans, sector guidance, investment criteria, and innovation pathways. Discussion will convene banks, investors, and real-economy actors to share practical guidance, global standards, and pioneering initiatives that position the circular economy as a strategic enabler of climate action— supporting NDC implementation, scaling circular financing, and driving real economy transformation.

Speakers:
- Delphine Garin, Circular Finance and Data Manager, World Business Council for Sustainable Development  
- Hege Sæbjørnsen, Circular Economy Lead, Ingka Group, IKEA 
- Alasdair Hedger, Senior Expert Measurement and Climate, Ellen MacArthur Foundation 
- Niina Pussinen, Circular Economy and Biodiversity Lead, ABN Amro 
- Peggy Lefort, Pollution & Circular Economy Lead, UNEP FI 

Moderator: Kavita Sachwani, PRB Implementation Coordinator, UNEP FI

The Circular Economy: A Key Enabler of Climate Action

This session will examine transition plan requirements in sustainability reporting standards through a deep dive into ISSB's Transition Plan Guidance. Speakers will discuss the current regulatory and policy landscape related to transition plans. The webinar will also provide insights from currently available transition planning guidance for financial institutions, including UNEP FI's Transition Planning Guidance and the materials elaborated by the Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT), which have been incorporated by the IFRS Foundation.

Speakers:
Richard Barker, ISSB Board Member
Jonathan Bravo, IFRS Foundation
Algirdas Brochard, London School of Economics and Political Science, Transition Pathway Initiative Centre
Orestis Valentzas, UNEP FI

This session is part of a series on ISSB implementation and the state of play of corporate sustainability standards across jurisdictions, through UNEP FI's Regulatory Implementation Support Programme. The series includes public and members-only sessions on timely topics related to ISSB, GRI, CSRD/ESRS and their interconnections, as well as other relevant frameworks including prudential matters, and features globally and regionally focused webinars.

Regulatory Developments in Transition Plans for Financial Institutions

This public webinar will focus on how the adoption of mandatory sustainability reporting policies interact with and complement the implementation of prudential-related sustainability reporting regulations. Financial institutions are subject to both types of sustainability reporting requirements. On one hand, they need to inform their investors and wider stakeholders about their sustainability practices and resilience of their business model to sustainability risks; on the other, they must report to regulatory authorities, such as central banks and supervisors, about their recognized sustainability risks and the mitigation measures they are taking. The latter is part of supervisory practices that aim to mitigate eventual risks to the wider financial ecosystem, acknowledging that financial institutions are subject to environmental or social shocks stemming from sustainability events. 

The session will bring insights to financial institutions on the connections between sustainability reporting on the corporate and prudential side, how financial institutions can prepare for both, interoperability considerations by financial supervisors, and the essential role of corporate sustainability reporting policies as part of the “enabling environment” that can support the development of regulatory or supervisory disclosure frameworks on sustainability. 

Check back for confirmed speakers.

This is the second session in a series of on ISSB implementation and the state of play of corporate sustainability standards across jurisdictions, through UNEP FI's Regulatory Implementation Support Programme. The series will include public and members-only sessions on timely topics related to ISSB, GRI, CSRD/ESRS, their interconnections as well as other relevant frameworks including prudential matters, and have both globally and regionally focused webinars.

Connectivity in Corporate and Prudential Reporting: Insights for financial institutions

This session will guide participants through practical approaches to identifying, assessing, and reporting physical climate risks in alignment with leading frameworks and best practices. It will explore how risk assessments can inform decision-making, strengthen portfolio resilience, and lay the foundation for effective climate adaptation strategies. 
 
Designed for finance practitioners, risk managers, and sustainability professionals, this webinar will provide actionable insights to help financial institutions integrate climate risk assessments into their core business processes and contribute to a more resilient financial system. 
 
This webinar series is part of the Climate Adaptation Innovation Learning project. Keep a look out for the next webinar in the series, which will take place in October on the role of sustainable finance taxonomies in scaling adaptation finance.

Climate Adaptation Innovation and Learning (#CAIL) is financed by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by UNIDO, in partnership with Climate KIC, Global Adaptation & Resilience Investment Working Group (GARI), and UNEP FI. We are developing a unique knowledge platform for climate adaptation - a hub to drive innovation and boost private sector engagement.

Assessing and disclosing physical climate risks for financial institutions: A key step towards climate adaptation

Sustainability risk is rapidly becoming a defining challenge for the finance sector, with climate change, environmental degradation, and social pressures increasingly impacting asset values, business models, and regulatory landscapes. Financial institutions are under growing scrutiny to not only understand these risks but to actively manage and disclose them.

This webinar explores how firms can leverage sustainability disclosures and climate stress-testing methodologies to identify vulnerabilities, meet evolving regulatory expectations, and build resilience in their portfolios. Join us to gain practical insights into integrating sustainability risk into your risk management frameworks.

The webinar will introduce two reports from UNEP FI’s Risk Centre that address these challenges: the recent Sustainability Disclosure Landscape Report and upcoming Climate Stress-Testing Methodologies Report.

Exploring the sustainability disclosure landscape and climate stress testing methodologies

Join UNEP FI, IFRS Foundation, and the ISSB Board for an insightful session exploring the current landscape of jurisdictional adoption of sustainability standards, with a particular focus on the global rollout of the ISSB’s IFRS S1 and S2 standards and implications for financial institutions. Speakers will provide an overview of available implementation and jurisdictional guidance, examine how different jurisdictions are approaching implementation, and highlight key guidance materials available to support implementation. The session will also delve into ISSB's interoperability with GRI Standards for a comprehensive double materiality approach to reporting and discuss regulatory developments in key jurisdictions.

Speakers include:
- Evie Robertson, IFRS Foundation/ISSB
- Bastian Buck, GRI
- Jeff Hales, ISSB
- Jonathan Bravo, IFRS Foundation
Additional speakers to be confirmed.

This is the first session in a series of on ISSB implementation and the state of play of corporate sustainability standards across jurisdictions, through UNEP FI's Regulatory Implementation Support Programme. The series will include public and members-only sessions on timely topics related to ISSB, GRI, CSRD/ESRS, their interconnections as well as other relevant frameworks including prudential matters, and have both globally and regionally focused webinars.

Global Implementation of Mandatory Sustainability Disclosure Standards

Pollution poses one of the most pervasive yet under-addressed risks to human health, ecosystems, and economies. From air, soil and water contamination to plastic waste and hazardous chemicals, pollution generates significant financial, legal, and reputational risks for banks and investors. At the same time, tackling pollution presents major opportunities for innovation, sustainable market creation, and positive environmental and social impact. This webinar will explore how banks can take a leading role in pollution reduction and management. Through the lens of science, policy and practice, the session will highlight strategies for integrating pollution considerations into risk assessment, deploying sustainable finance instruments, and forging effective public-private partnerships. 

In December 2024, UNEP FI launched ”Navigating Pollution: A Blueprint for Banks”, a practical guide to help banks identify, assess, and act on pollution-related risks and opportunities. To complement this cross-cutting guidance, UNEP FI will present two new sector-specific guidance documents on pollution reduction and management in the agriculture, and in the buildings & construction sectors. These sector briefs offer tailored insights into how banks can support pollution reduction across two high-impact sectors, with recommendations on setting practice targets and actions to accelerate implementation.

This webinar will share key insights from the overarching blueprint and the two new sectoral guidance, explore how pollution action aligns with emerging regulatory trends, and broader climate/nature goals, and share perspectives from banks, policymakers, and scientists across water, soil, and air pollution.

The agricultural sector guidance was co-developed with the Financing Agrochemical Reduction and Management (FARM) Programme, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Pollution reduction and management in banking: Guidance for the agriculture and buildings & construction sectors

EIT Climate-KIC has partnered with UNEP FI to produce this ‘thought leadership’ series that aims to inspire financial actors worldwide to move from risk to alignment, challenge current assumptions around climate alignment and develop ideas and concepts on how alignment can best be achieved. We hope to encourage stakeholders that a proactive climate response is not only about disclosing risks, but also about investing in green opportunities that can enable the low emissions societies of the future. This series convenes innovators and industry experts to provoke discussion, challenge the status quo and guide the transformation of business and finance towards a sustainable future.
UNEP FI and EIT Climate-KIC present the 3rd and 4th papers of this Thought Leadership Series:

“#3. Innovation and Tranformation: What It Will Take to Finance Net Zero"
The third paper in this series will be presented by Richard Roberts and John Elkington, who explore the fundamental shift in the purpose and practice of finance - as well as the policies that determine the "rules of the game" - required to align our economy with a 1.5°C Low Energy Demand (LED) scenario.

"#4. Finance 2030: A Time Travel Exercise"
The fourth paper is from Jakob Thomä and Anne Schoenauer, who present a thought experiment into the key characteristics that will define the finance sector in 2030 in response to the economic transition arising from climate risks, public health challenges and economic and societal  transformation.

Aligning finance for the net zero economy: new ideas from leading thinkers

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Aligning finance for the net zero economy: new ideas from leading thinkers

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UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative