Sustainable Markets Initiative

Our SMI Asset Manager and Asset Owner Task Force has today published a report to help asset owners and asset managers integrate climate risks and opportunities into their investment decisions. Developed by Task Force members Impax Asset Management and State Street, the report titled ‘The climate has changed: How CIOs are investing in a climate-resilient economy’ distils findings from a series of interviews with Chief Investment Officers from leading asset owners, with five recommendations emerging from those conversations. The full report is now available on our website https://lnkd.in/dz6FpzTu #assetmanager #assetowner #terracarta #CIO #climate #sustainableeconomy

And that’s a wrap for the SMI’s bumper programme of activity at #ClimateWeekNYC. The penultimate day kicked off early at the offices of PwC where a panel discussion led by Ronald O'Hanley, CEO of State Street, and Ian Simm, CEO of Impax Asset Management, explored how CIOs allocate capital to the transition. The conversation drew from a series of interviews with CIOs from leading asset owners which form part of a new report due out soon. Over at The Spiral in Hudson Yards, one of New York's most iconic landmarks, guests of our Sustainable Buildings Task Force - led by George Oliver, Chairman & CEO of Johnson Controls - enjoyed a tour of Pfizer’s cutting-edge office space. The building demonstrates how innovative technologies can drive significant cost and emission reductions through connected technologies and optimised energy usage. Attendees were also able to engage in a dynamic discussion about the transformative potential of #AI and the technology that is at the centre of #decarbonising buildings. At Bank of America, a G20 and COP30 Roundtable on scaling private sector capital had leaders discussing how to foster an enabling environment that crowds in private sector capital at scale to advance the new climate economy, particularly in EMDEs. It was then over to our anchor event of the week, the SMI Autumn CEO Summit – more on that soon. And to wrap up the programme, an energised group of early risers joined our ‘Seeing is believing’ Tour of the New York Stock Exchange. A huge thank you to all our members and everyone who participated in our discussions. We look forward to continued collaboration and action towards our shared goal of a sustainable transition. #itstime #terracarta

Day 2 of the SMI’s programme of activity at #ClimateWeekNYC offered insight and inspiration. 👩💼 To start the day, we convened leading women CEOs to discuss the role of women in driving sustainability transition in global organisations. 🚢 This was swiftly followed by a gathering of leaders from across the #shipping industry. Shipping emits over a billion tonnes of greenhouse gases annually - that’s 3% of the world’s emissions – and the session focused on how to leverage the SMI’s convening power to drive systemic change. 🚛 In partnership with WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development, we were delighted to host a Collective for Clean Transport Finance. The session explored emerging investment opportunities in green road freight corridors in elected geographies and the blueprint they provide for national-level deployment. 🤝 SMI Member DLA Piper hosted two further SMI events – one to launch our new SMI North America Hub, a significant step towards fostering sustainable markets and driving economic transformation in Canada, the United States and Mexico – and a meeting of energy CEOs for an engaging discussion on advancing sustainable #energy solutions. ♻️ At our Circularity Open House in the afternoon, members of the SMI’s #Circularity Task Force introduced guests to the industry, sharing their stories and competitive business value gains in creating supply chains that recover or recycle resources used to create diverse products. 🌌 The day ended on a literal high, with a reception hosted by Lloyd's and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) at Hudson Yards where the twinkling New York skyline was the perfect backdrop to photographer Max Alexander’s ‘Our Fragile Space’ exhibition. The exhibition – which will soon travel to the UN – looks at #space sustainability and what action is being taken to protect this fragile environment and the night sky. #itstime #terracarta #astracarta

Day 1 of the SMI’s programme of activity at #ClimateWeekNYC was a story in two parts – #Africa and #Energy. We’ve already shared highlights from the fantastic series of events focused on Africa, now let’s turn to energy. Together with EY and Bank of America, we hosted 40+ leaders in an interactive workshop on Voluntary Carbon Markets which focused on the actions needed to scale a more robust and credible voluntary carbon market. Transparency, robustness and clear regulatory standards were identified as critical to generate the demand signals buyers need to be confident in making voluntary #carbonmarkets part of their sustainability strategy. Later in the day, the focus turned to #interconnectors and the private-public collaboration that will be required to meet the massive need for new transmission lines to handle the renewable power buildout on the journey to net zero. At a roundtable conversation hosted in partnership with Zhero and moderated by Breakthrough Energy , leaders discussed lessons learned through past projects, the role of public-private partnerships in accelerating investment, the emerging significance of offshore solutions in areas such as the Mediterranean, and market and policy signals required to accelerate developments. With a global grids target expected to be announced at #COP29, there is much to look forward to in this space. #terracarta #itstime #energygrids Karen Fang, Amy Brachio, Chan Boodhai, Martin Berg, Brennan Spellacy, Alessandra Pasini, Maria Robinson, Miguel Angel Prado Balboa, Michael Skelly, Christina Hayes, Campbell Howe' Shashank Sane, Chandrasekar Govindarajalu, Atul Arya, Jeff Dennis

Today at #ClimateWeekNYC the SMI and AECOM have launched a groundbreaking #AI tool designed to protect #nature during infrastructure development. With infrastructure development set to surge, driven by population and economic growth, the Nature Risk Tool will combat a reality that infrastructure development often leads to habitat loss, biodiversity decline, pollution, and increased greenhouse gas emissions. Powered by AECOM, and using datasets from the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), the SMI Nature Risk Tool enables infrastructure investors and promoters to analyse any piece of land globally (at a scale of metres), providing expert-reviewed descriptions of the location’s habitat and biomes early in the site selection process. Read more at https://lnkd.in/emFCtCXG

Members of our Blended Finance Task Force, under the leadership of Marc-Andre Blanchard, Executive Vice-President and Head of CDPQ Global and Global Head of Sustainability, CDPQ, have collaborated on a new guide for how blended finance can be a catalyst for scaled up investment in sustainable transition.    Launched at #ClimateWeekNYC, the guide includes case studies and lessons learned to help further the alignment of industry, finance, and country roadmaps towards developing a pipeline of investable projects.    SMI CEO, Jennifer Jordan-Saifi, M.V.O., MBA says: "Blended finance offers a unique opportunity for systemic change. By aligning industry, finance, and NDCs, long-term strategies for sustainable growth and climate resilience can be created, ensuring that investments contribute not only to immediate financial goals but also to the structural transformation of economies.    "At the SMI we are proud to support this effort and are delighted to see many of our members sharing case studies to demonstrate what is possible so that others can help accelerate, replicate and scale blended finance globally. By working together, enhancing synergies and better leveraging our collective strengths, achieving a sustainable future for all is possible."   Our sincere thanks to all contributors. We look forward to continued collaboration with our members to support blended finance projects.   The report can be accessed via our Blended Finance Task Force web page https://lnkd.in/g36nmA5t

The #ClimateWeekNYC theme of 'It's time' came out loud and clear during a full day of sessions focused on Africa, hosted at the CFA Society New York. #Africa, with its rich natural resources, its incredibly valuable biodiversity, as well as a young, energetic workforce, represents a huge opportunity for investors and offers #climate solutions that extend far beyond the continent. It's time to recognise this, value Africa’s natural assets - which the rest of the world depends upon for a sustainable transition - and work together to accelerate private capital mobilisation.    Highlights of the day included the SMI Africa Council's Investable Asset Classes Working Group session on GEMs3.0, where there was a lively discussion around how data can bring Nature onto Africa's balance sheet as well as much needed access to capital flows. The SMI Africa Council's quarterly meeting, chaired by Dr. Hubert Danso, CEO, Africa investor, and Dr James Mwangi, CEO, Equity Group Holdings, saw the launch of a new energy entrepreneurship competition for Africa, led by Octopus Energy. Dr Ramatoulaye Diallo N'diaye, founder and CEO of The Great Green Wall of Africa, alongside H.E. Josefa Leonal Correia Sacko, Commissioner for ARBE, addressed the African NDC Institutional Summit, with the Commissioner also receiving an African NDC Investment Award.    To find our more about the work of the SMI's Africa Council, email [email protected] 

“What it’s going to take to decarbonise the sector is massive, innovative collaboration.” As Beth Barker from Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership explains, cross-sector collaboration is key to driving the future of sustainable transport. Market demand, policy, and green finance can all contribute to a solution. Today we’re excited to be hosting two transport-specific #ClimateWeekNYC events: “Shipping pre-launch Roundtable”, and “Collective for Clean Transport Finance” in collaboration with the WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Transport is also one of the critical topics that will be addressed at our Autumn CEO Summit on Thursday. For more expert insights into decarbonising transport at scale, watch this RE:TV film featuring Sir David King from Centre for Climate Repair, Beth Barker from Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL), and Jennifer Holmgren from LanzaTech. To learn more about the Sustainable Markets Initiative, please visit: https://lnkd.in/dtv5j8N

Today, at a meeting of the SMI's Africa Council at #ClimateWeekNYC, members celebrated the launch of an Energy Entrepreneurship Competition led by Octopus Energy, leader of the Council's Energy Workstream. At its heart, the objective of the Africa Council is to encourage collective and scalable action by business and finance in support of sustainability agendas across the African continent. With 685 million people globally living without access to electricity (Source: Energy Progress Report), there is a critical need in #Africa for reliable, sustainable #energy infrastructure. This competition is an example of how our Africa Energy Workstream members are working to accelerate the development and deployment of innovative energy solutions across Africa.    Full details and a link to enter can be found at https://lnkd.in/gegx2A-G

Sustainable Markets Initiative members are already making waves at #ClimateWeekNYC. Read on for highlights from Monday's programming. 💡 John T. Colas from Oliver Wyman and Karen Fang from Bank of America participated in a panel discussion about collaborating to deliver on the promises of the Inflation Reduction Act two years after its enactment. For more information on this landmark law, read our interactive article: https://lnkd.in/eCZB6kKA 💡 Helen Walter-Terrinoni unpacked the role steel, concrete and energy efficiency have to play in decarbonising the built environment at scale, also sharing Trane Technologies' new commitment to a 40% reduction in embodied carbon by 2030. Visit our digital hub for more on constructing a sustainable future: https://lnkd.in/evBMwwhf 💡 HowGood co-hosted a conversation about how to scale Regenerative Agriculture in order to drive positive outcomes for food, livelihoods, and the planet, inviting four executives from companies with over $150 billion USD in combined revenue to the kitchen table. 💡 Ellen Jackowski from Mastercard spoke about how organisations can encourage sustainable lifestyles that benefit consumers and the climate alike, from shopping and travel to education and entertainment. 💡 Richard Saines from Pollination explored how investing in natural capital can safeguard our critical ecosystems while also delivering for the bottom line. Stay tuned for more updates and insights.