Achieving Net Zero | Ethical Finance Global 2022

James Wilde of Phoenix Group, Eva Cairns of abrdn and Chris Hayward of joined our Ethical Finance Global 2022 climate change panel, with David Pitt-Watson as moderator. Watch now at

The panel was focused on fielding questions from the audience, with a number of insightful contributions from those gathered. The session looked at the different initiatives present in the market, the role of metrics and their reflection of reality and the need for deep engagement with companies.

In particular, Eva remarked that "you can divest quickly with a low carbon portfolio… but you haven’t actually moved anything in the real world". A net zero portfolio can be achieved by excluding high-emission sectors, but as sectors such as cement are likely to be economically useful, this may do nothing to transition towards a clean economy as a whole.

James Wilde emphasised the need for a long-term view, and argued for greater collaboration between the constituent parts of a normally competitive sector, in order to address the climate crisis.

Closing the session, Chris Hayward issued a rousing call for politicians and financiers to shed their "short timescales", reject the ease of saying "let the millennials sort this out" and take responsibility for the crisis.

Watch now at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StsHWeGkcF4

 

by Sam

Ethical Finance Global 2022 - summit announced

We are delighted to formally announce the launch of Ethical Finance Global 2022, which will take place as an in-person event on 6th September 2022 in Edinburgh hosted by NatWest Group.

The summit is the premier event in ethical finance, and is themed 'ESG in a Volatile World: Profit, Principles or Politics'. It will tackle three core thematics: climate, nature and social. Confirmed speakers include Rt. Hon. Alok Sharma MP, Sarah Breeden, Saker Nusseibeh and Anshula Kant. Click here to find out more.

Our in-person events offer a unique ability to forge connections, and over the years our Summits have built capacity, influenced policy, enabled deals, informed new products, driven framework commitments, helped deploy capital to the SDGs and developed lifelong friendships. If you have attended our flagship global Summit in the past, we would love to see you again in September; if not, then now is your chance!

As well as looking at macroeconomic issues impacting global markets, we will have specific sessions on topics including:

  • The growing impact of conflict and geopolitics in ESG
  • Core global challenges in financing climate adaptation and mitigation
  • The role of finance in protecting and restoring nature and biodiversity
  • The emergence of the S in ESG as a core priority
  • The role of financial leaders in defining organisational purpose
  • Financing the SDGs

Sign up now at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ethical-finance-global-2022-esg-in-a-volatile-world-registration-349512941617?aff=blog, using the code 'EARLY20' for a 20% early bird discount.

by GEFI

The Data Dichotomy: Courage or Caution | Ethical Finance Round Table

Our next Ethical Finance Round Table event, entitled The Data Dichotomy: Courage or Caution, will take place on Tuesday 14 June 2022. It will explore developments in ESG data provision, its limitations and how asset managers are using data to inform long term investment decisions.

Our speakers will respond to some of the toughest questions facing the industry:

  • Is "we need better data" becoming an excuse for inaction from the industry?
  • Are ESG ratings fundamentally compromised by being at least partly based on subjective data?
  • How does the backwards-looking nature of data square with the long-term, forwards-looking view that responsible asset owners should take?
  • As disclosures become more widespread and data improves, is there pressure to avoid sectors or regions with poorer disclosures, even if they might deliver genuine impact?

Confirmed speakers are:

  • Graham Burnside, Co-Founder and Senior Advisor, GEFI (moderator)
  • Dr Richard Mattison, President of S&P Global Sustainable1 and CEO of S&P Global Trucost.
  • Hetal Patel, Head of Climate Investment Risk, Phoenix Group
  • Kate McGrath, ESG Analyst – Fixed Income, abrdn

Sign up now at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/1716527070480/WN_i9UjoXj0QZm6xbEczOhEKw.

by GEFI

Financing a Shared Future for All Life on Earth: the role of TNFD in a Global Biodiversity Framework - Biodiversity Day interview with Elizabeth Mrema, UN CPD & Lorna Slater MSP

Last week would have seen the crucial biodiversity summit COP15 take place, before it was delayed due to the pandemic. To mark both Biodiversity Day and the original date, and build moment before the rescheduled summit this Autumn, we hosted a discussion on Financing a Shared Future for All Life on Earth: the role of TNFD in a Global Biodiversity Framework.

We were joined by UN Convention on Biodiversity Executive Secretary & Taskforce for Nature-Related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Co-chair Elizabeth Mrema and Scottish Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity Lorna Slater MSP, to discuss why we need to finance nature, the Global Biodiversity Framework, how governments can help and what the Scottish Government is doing in this space.

Despite on-going efforts, biodiversity is deteriorating worldwide and this decline is projected to worsen with business-as-usual scenarios. This session, aimed at global finance practitioners, is intended to raise aware and inspire practical action in relation to the critical need to finance. It will provide an update on global and national initiatives to help drive the action required to finance a shared future for all life on earth.

With the forthcoming Global Biodiversity Framework, the Convention on Biological Diversity is setting the stage for a worldwide re-direction of financial flows away from nature-negative and towards nature-positive outcomes. Market players are speeding ahead with testing the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) beta framework, to make it ready to inform and respond to these new international norms around nature, nature-based solutions and finance. As part of the Scottish Government’s National Strategy for Economic Transformation, we have committed to establishing a values-led, high-integrity market for responsible investment in natural capital.

GEFI has a long history of supporting finance for nature, from a programme of collaboration between UNDP, GEFI and the Scottish Government, to the COP26 launch of an exclusive, commercial platform showcasing financial products that are directly aligned to the SDGs, and nature-focused sessions at our annual summits and COP26.

by GEFI

Agenda Announced: Ethical Finance ASEAN 2022

The Global Ethical Finance Initiative (GEFI) and the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers are delighted to announce the launch of the agenda for our inaugural Ethical Finance ASEAN 2022 summit.

Taking place virtually on Wednesday 29 June 2022, the summit begins at 10am MYT (GMT+8), with a full replay taking place later at 10am BST (GMT+1). The summit starts with an overview of sustainable finance in the ASEAN region, before exploring the topic further in sessions centred around three core thematics: climate, nature and social. The summit then explores practical pathways to action with a session on the SDGs and concludes with an interview between prominent corporate and financial sustainability leaders. Click here to view the agenda.

Speakers include:

  • Komi Rajdev, Head of Business Development ASEAN, Moody’s ESG Solutions
  • Suraya Sani, Senior Supervisor, Financial Conglomerates Supervision Department, Bank Negara Malaysia
  • Shahril Azuar Bin Jimin, Chief Sustainability Officer, MayBank
  • Raja Amir Shah Raja Azwa, CEO, HSBC Amanah
  • Yuki Yasui, Regional Director, GFANZ APAC Network
  • Rafe Haneef, CEO, Group Transaction Banking and Group Chief Sustainability Office
  • Rizal Il-Ehzan Bin Fadil Azim, CEO, Alliance Islamic Bank Berhad

Sign up now at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ethical-finance-asean-2022-tickets-299068761717?aff=agenda

by GEFI

EVENT ANNOUNCED | Ethical Finance ASEAN 2022

Following the success of our South East Asia regional showcase at Ethical Finance Global 2021, the Global Ethical Finance Initiative (GEFI) is delighted to co-host the inaugural Ethical Finance ASEAN 2022 with the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers (AICB).

This virtual event, to be held on Wednesday 29 June 2022, will present a unique opportunity to hear from experts on sustainable and responsible finance in the ASEAN region and beyond. The summit is themed “ESG in a Volatile World – Profit, Purpose or Politics?”

As well as looking at macroeconomic issues impacting global markets, we will have specific sessions on topics including:

  • How the megatrends of 2022 are affecting ASEAN economies
  • Financing nature and biodiversity in ASEAN: sustainable palm oil and deforestion
  • The role of the SDGs as a coordinating framework, and progress on financing the 2030 goals
  • Core priorities on the S in ESG for ASEAN economies
  • Perspectives from local and international finance leaders

For more information, click here.

by GEFI

Responding to the War in Ukraine: Ethical Finance at a Time of Crisis

Finance sector experts discussed the role of finance in responding to the war in Ukraine in a special joint event hosted with the CFA UK's Scottish Committee, focusing on the need to respond to the energy supply shock, the "economic war" being waged against Russia and the options open to investors.

On Wednesday 16th March, Lord John Alderdice, a key figure in the Northern Ireland Peace Process and Director of the Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict, Jeremy Lawson of abrdn, Helen Thomas of Blonde Money and Graham C. Cook, CFA of the Environment Agency Pension Fund joined our event 'Responding to the War in Ukraine: Ethical Finance at a Time of Crisis'.

Lord John Alderdice opened the event by emphasising the need for finance to play a role in securing a just - and peaceful – world: a sentiment all the more acute in the context of the ongoing war in Ukraine. The shadow of the conflict underpinned Jeremy Lawson, Chief Economist at abrdn’s opening intervention, where he explained that the conflict has highlighted that central banks are behind the policy curve: they have few policy levers left with which to respond to the conflict and the resultant energy supply shock.

Helen Thomas of Blonde Money echoed these sentiments, as she proceeded to unpack the finance (and UK’s) policy response to the conflict in Ukraine. She explained that the last few weeks had, in fact, laid bare two wars that are happening in parallel: a land war, and an economic war that goes beyond mere sanctions. Finance has become another front on a complex war, and no investor can truly be neutral as a result. This was a position that was echoed by Lord Alderdice, who cited the difficulties of aligning private financial flows with broader geopolitics and policy as the conflict in Ukraine unfolds.

The question remains, however: what investors can therefore do in response to the conflict? Whilst there might be pressure to divest, as Graham Cook commented, the market isn't necessarily there. In fact, for many investors, their Russia-based holdings had been relatively low due to existing governance concerns - many of those with robust sustainability and governance policies were simply not deeply invested in Russia, in contrast with some of the kneejerk divestments of recent weeks.

Jeremy Lawson suggested that the conflict is ultimately symbolic of a tendency towards fragmentation that has been in place for a decade, but could end up strengthening the NATO alliance: the decrease in globalisation over the past decade has been underlined by the conflict but its impact is not linear. We could, for example, see climate change policy undermined by return to coal, or see the flexibility of EU ETS promote renewables as source of energy security as the war unfolds.

As Helen Thomas ultimately argued, when thinking about the war in Ukraine we need to be mindful of longer term history when we think about the moral and practical steps the finance sector needs to take during this crisis. Both Helen Thomas and Jeremy Lawson were keen to point to political economy as a fundamental driver of investing, with formal modelling a crucial potential aid to decision-making. There was broad agreement that China is key, not just in terms of the effectiveness of the economic war now being waged against Russia, but on climate action and the shape of any reshuffle of the geopolitical order provoked by this war.

John Alderdice was interviewed about the event on BBC Radio Scotland following the event; you can listen here.

We would strongly encourage you to make to make a donation to the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal.

by GEFI

Scottish Taskforce for Green and Sustainable Financial Services launches

Global finance leaders, including representatives from the UN and both the UK and Scottish Governments, set out the role Scotland’s financial services can play in the fight against climate change.

On the day UN climate body the IPCC issued its starkest warnings to date, UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance and former Bank of England Governor, Mark Carney; Scottish Finance Secretary, Kate Forbes and HM Treasury Economic Secretary, John Glen came together with David Pitt-Watson and Dame Susan Rice to highlight how Scotland can become a world-leading hub for climate finance through the launch of a new Scottish Taskforce for Green and Sustainable Financial Services, chaired by the Global Ethical Finance Initiative.

Launching on Monday 28th of February, the Taskforce, initiated by Scottish Government with GEFI appointed as Secretariat, presents a unique opportunity for Scotland’s financial services sector to build on the legacy of COP26 by working together to demonstrate global leadership in implementing the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) roadmaps. The taskforce opened with, and was underpinned by, a realisation that participants were facing unique opportunity for Scotland’s financial services sector to build on the legacy of COP26 by working together to demonstrate global leadership in implementing the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) roadmaps.

At the launch event, Taskforce Chair David Pitt-Watson reflected on the progress of responsible investing in the last 20 years, from setting up the UN PRI in a basement to the 4,000 leading financial institutions taking part now. Following him, Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy Kate Forbes set out her vision for a sustainable Scottish economy, and explained how the Taskforce can contribute to both this vision and Scotland's Net Zero success more broadly. It will include representatives from across the Scottish financial industry, building a world-leading cluster and deepenening Scotland's existing strength in responsible finance.

UN Envoy for Climate and Finance and former chair of the Bank of England Mark Carney shared a similar sense of optimism. He evoked the spirit of Adam Smith and memories of a Burns’ night supper spent with Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeonm at which the pair spoke about how Smith's insights could contribute centuries later, a theme picked up by GEFI's Wealth of Nations in the 21st Century essay series at COP26.

He went on to explain some of the core goals of the Glasgow Finance Alliance for Net Zero, including:

  • Implementing best-practice transition plans and mapping those into mandatory approaches
  • Phasing down stranded assets responsibly
  • Establishing rigorous offset markets, driving investment into the Global South

The process of aligning core financial market benchmarks with the aims of this transition will not be as simple as flicking a green switch, and nor does it mean only investing in already green companies. It requires mobilising new investment into developing countries, and essentiall - yet polluting - industries such as steel or cement. A coordinated approach, which the Taskforce could provide, has the power to help deliver this investment.

Citing the specific example of climate stress testing mechanisms, Mark Carney reminded us that the mechanisms for broad-scale transitions needed to be embedded into corporates. The critical point to remember, he argued, was that the finance sector is in a position coming out of Glasgow where we are broadly orientated to Net Zero and is beginning to develop the tools necessary to achieve this. As UK Economic Secretary to the Treasury John Glen echoed in his intervention, the challenge still facing regulators and government is how to provide a clear vision to get there.

One solution, argued Dame Susan Rice, lies in the ability of culture to provide both a top down and bottom up approach. The Taskforce presents a unique opportunity for Scottish financial services to work together and create a globally recognised centre for sustainable and green financial services. Culture is conventionally thought of in terms of single organisations - how can one company improve its own culture - but what the Taskforce could achieve is embedding a culture of environmental responsibility across Scotland's financial sector.

Wrapping up the Taskforce launch, David Pitt-Watson quoted Margaret Mead, who said that one should “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has”. As the Taskforce launch poignantly highlighted, the small group of citizens determined to deliver the legacy of COP26 is becoming bigger, and the need to change the world ever more acute. The Scottish Taskforce for Green and Sustainable Financial Services represents a critical juncture in making sure that the necessary changes are enacted, and relies on a collective effort to fully shift the societal dial towards Net Zero, and to a sustainable, more prosperous future on earth.

To find out more about the taskforce, and to look at the ways that you can get involved, please visit https://www.globalethicalfinance.org/taskforce/

by GEFI

PRESS RELEASE | UN joins forces with UK & Scottish Governments to Launch Green Finance Taskforce

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE GLOBAL ETHICAL FINANCE INITIATIVE

EMBARGO: IMMEDIATE

UN JOINS FORCES WITH UK & SCOTTISH GOVERNMENTS TO LAUNCH GREEN FINANCE TASKFORCE.

Global finance leaders, including representatives from the UN and both the UK and Scottish Governments, set out the role Scotland's financial services can play in the fight against climate change.

On the day UN climate body the IPCC issued its starkest warnings to date, UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance and former Bank of England Governor, Mark Carney; Scottish Finance Secretary, Kate Forbes and HM Treasury Economic Secretary, John Glen, came together to highlight how Scotland can become a world-leading hub for climate finance through the launch of a new Scottish Taskforce for Green and Sustainable Financial Services, chaired by the Global Ethical Finance Initiative.

They emphasised how Scotland can build upon the legacy of COP26 in Glasgow through its intellectual capital, history as a centre of financial innovation and existing strengths in green finance to lead on the transition to a net zero economy.

Kate Forbes, Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy, said:
"We know the transition to a net zero economy will be a monumental undertaking. It is going to be the single greatest social and economic transformation required in history, and it is going to impact every sector fo the economy. No part of our economy, no part of our society will be immune to the impact of that transformation. It will be hard: it is going to require the reallocation of trillions of dollars of capital."

Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance, said:
"The more credible and predictable government climate policies are, the more investors will pour money in, in anticipation, driving large-scale investment, faster decarbonisation, more jobs and greater growth."

ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS

See pre-launch press release:
https://www.globalethicalfinance.org/2022/02/28/press-release-scotland-stakes-its-claim-to-be-a-leading-centre-in-finance-for-a-net-zero-and-sustainable-future/

Speakers at the event included:

David Pitt Watson, Cambridge Judge Business School
Kate Forbes, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy
Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance
John Glen MP, Economic Secretary to HM Treasury
Dame Susan Rice, Chair of the Banking Culture Board

The Taskforce will report on progress and policy recommendations to the First Minister’s Financial Services Growth and Development Board, thereby remaining aligned with existing Scottish Government and industry structures for government-industry collaboration.

Over 160,000 people are employed in finance related jobs and £9.5 billion of responsible funds are already managed in Scotland.

The Global Ethical Financial Initiative has become the hub at the centre of the ethical finance movement. Curating independent conversations among a broad coalition of financial services stakeholders, as well as delivering practical projects.

Kate Forbes, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy, Scottish Government

Kate is the Member of the Scottish Parliament for the Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituency (which includes Dingwall, the Black Isle and the Great Glen) and Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy in the Scottish Government.

Kate is from Dingwall, although she spent part of her upbringing in Glasgow and India. Until she was elected as MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, Kate was employed as an accountant in the banking industry. Prior to that she studied History at the Universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh.

As a backbencher, Kate served on the Scottish Parliament’s Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee, the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee, the Health and Sport Committee and the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee. She also served as Parliamentary Liaison Officer for Finance and the Constitution. As well as leading a campaign to ban plastic straws, Kate has participated in several cross party groups at Holyrood including Crofting, Gaelic, Human Trafficking, Palliative Care and Rural Policy.

A fluent Gaelic speaker, Kate made history by becoming the first female MSP to give a plenary speech entirely in Gaelic in the current Scottish Parliament chamber.
Kate was appointed as Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy in June 2018 and appointed into her current role on 20 May 2021.
Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance; Former Governor, Bank of England

Mark was appointed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres as UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance in December 2019. From 2013 to March 2020, he served as the Governor of the Bank of England and Chair of the Monetary Policy Committee, Financial Policy Committee and the Board of the Prudential Regulation Committee.

In addition to his duties as Governor of the Bank of England, he has served as Chair of the Financial Stability Board (FSB) from 2011-2018, First Vice-Chair of the European Systemic Risk Board, a member of the Group of Thirty and the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum.

Mark was born in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada in 1965. He received a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Harvard University in 1988. He went on to receive a master’s degree in Economics in 1993 and a doctorate in Economics in 1995, both from Oxford University.

After a thirteen-year career with Goldman Sachs in its London, Tokyo, New York and Toronto offices, Mark Carney was appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada in August 2003. In November 2004, he left the Bank of Canada to become Senior Associate Deputy Minister of Finance. He held this position until his appointment as Governor of the Bank of Canada on 1 February 2008. Mark Carney served as Governor of the Bank of Canada and Chairman of its Board of Directors until 1 June 2013

by GEFI

Diversity and Inclusion | Ethical Finance Round Table | Summary

Finance experts shared academic research, personal perspectives and technical expertise on the integration of diversity and inclusion concerns into finance. They emphasised the need for a process that goes beyond mere representation toward a deeper appreciation and integration of diverse voices. Watch now.

For our first Ethical Finance Roundtable of 2022, chaired by Amy Clarke, Chief Impact Officer at Tribe Impact Capital, we were delighted to welcome Prof. Alex Edmans, Professor of Finance at London Business School, Gavin Lewis, Managing Director, UK LGPS at BlackRock & equality campaigner and Lynne Highway, Director of Colleague and HR Experience at NatWest Group to discuss Diversity and Inclusion in the finance sector and beyond. Whilst the discussion showed that the sector must strive to improve, there is a clear appetite for progress on diversity and inclusion from across the financial sector and beyond.

Opening the event, Prof. Alex Edmans explored the business case for diversity, showing that many claims are based on flimsy evidence that is accepted uncritically and emphasising the need to be aware of our confirmation biases when making the case for diversity. Ultimately, while the evidence doesn’t support a business case for boosting superficial diversity metrics, it does support a business case for diversity and inclusion – as Professor Edmans highlighted “it involves far more than putting a few token minorities on the board to tick a box. It is much harder to create a culture where everybody feels psychologically safe at work”. As he powerfully stated, after sharing some of his personal experiences with racism and age discrimination in the workplace, “maybe making more money is not the real reason to do this. Maybe we just agree it’s the right thing to do”.

The question about the moral case for action on diversity and inclusion carried over into a fascinating intervention from Gavin Lewis. Lewis, who co-founded the #TalkAboutBlack’ movement to break the taboo surrounding conversations about race, noted that whilst progress has been made to foster inclusivity, finance had not gone far enough. For example, while hiring practices have improved markedly, retention still lags behind for myriad social, cultural, and economic reasons.

One fundamental problem, he argued, lay with the tacit expectation that firms would do the right thing, and that there was a straightforward business case for doing so. If there was, he said, it would have been done by now, and as he aptly commented, “The right thing didn’t happen when George Floyd was murdered. The right thing has been here all along and it hasn’t worked”.

Lynne Highway shared some of the work that NatWest have done to foster an inclusive culture within their ‘organisational DNA’ in order to not just meet, but exceed, statutory requirements on diversity. She said that NatWest is proud to be nurturing a fair and inclusive bank where they champion potential, helping people, families, and businesses to thrive.

Having a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace is essential to achieving our purpose, as it enables the Bank to work together to achieve great things with our colleagues, communities, and customers. Improving representation, Lynne argued, requires creating an inclusive environment where colleagues feel able to bring their whole self to work. One way that NatWest have done this is via reciprocal mentoring, to allow for an open dialogue between colleagues from different backgrounds, and at different levels of an organisation.

The roundtable then moved on to a lively audience Q&A which included discussion on:

  • Whether we might see a TSFD (Taskforce on Social-Related financial disclosures)
  • The need to be aware of – and compensate – the emotional labour that might be expected of colleagues from underrepresented groups in the process of improving workspaces
  • Whether it is more important to focus within (on the internal operations) or outside (on investee companies or clients)
  • How the sector can learn from the relatively successful process of integrating climate-related concerns

Click here to sign up to our next event, the launch of the Scottish Taskforce for Green and Sustainable Financial Services, on Monday 28th February.

by GEFI