Nature Driving Economic Transformation
Sunday 19 September, 11:45 – 13:30
UNHQ
Economic growth is only sustainable if it is in line with the limits of nature. In this session, the Biodiversity and Nature High Impact Initiative will bring together countries undertaking significant economic shifts, and catalysing a global movement in evidence-based policies and investments for an inclusive green transition that accelerates progress on the SDGs, recognises and supports nature contributions and dependencies, and reduces related risks to support a Biodiversity Economy.
Pollination Managing Director Dr. Helen Crowley spoke on the panel alongside representatives from the Government of Brazil, Government of Indonesia, Government of France, World Bank, UNEP, Elion, and the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
2023 RANE & NASDAQ Risk Summit
Monday 18 September, 8:30 – 14:30
Nasdaq Marketsite, 4 Times Square
In today’s environment, boards and the c-suite need to be prepared to address emerging risks that may not be fully known yet, requiring them to approach their oversight role with a forward-looking view towards where risks may be heading in the future. This is particularly relevant with the speed of technology change and lagging regulations in areas like Artificial Intelligence, Deep Fakes, and Disinformation.
Join Nasdaq and RANE for a one day, in-person summit where experts in cyber, geopolitics, compliance, and security share lessons learned for board members with practical takeaways to apply in their oversight role. Pollination Senior Advisor Anne Alonzo will be joining as a key speaker.
Implementing the global energy transition: SDG7 and public-private collaboration
Monday 18 September, 9:30 – 12:15
TIAA, 730 3rd Ave
SDG 7 calls for a substantial increase in the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix by 2030. There is a tremendous opportunity to introduce new renewable energy projects that will help achieve SDG 7 globally. Building case studies and sharing best practices around markets where renewable energy usage, including hydrogen, solar, and wind (in terms of final energy consumption) are substantial can be applied to markets deemed more challenging. Considering the multiple sources of renewable energy and how their usage is increasing SDG 7 could be attainable if a comprehensive approach utilizing all aspects of renewable energy is used.
In order to continue momentum towards SDG 7, the risk of financing renewable energy sources in developing markets must be mitigated. According to UNDP estimates, financing costs can account for up to 60% of the life-cycle cost of low-carbon energy in developing markets. To close the current energy financing gap, regulators must work to build feasible markets to encourage private sector investment across all aspects of renewable energy. As thousands of members of the private sector are looking to incorporate renewables into their future business strategies, navigating these different forms of regulations can make the transition challenging. Stakeholders need to be part of a dialogue that sets out why renewables, such as hydrogen, is so critical, what is the global future for investment in renewables and how renewables will help shape public policy in both the present and future.
Pollination Managing Director and Global Head of Advisory John Morton will be moderating one of the sessions at the event entitled “New Technologies for an Efficient Transition”.
The $700 billion gap: Driving investment into nature at increasing scale
Monday 18 September, 10:30 – 12:00
Tavern on the Green, W 67th St
The agreement at COP15 aims to close the $700 billion funding gap between what we spend to protect Nature every year and what we need to be spending by 2030. Nine months on from COP15, it is clear that there is still a desperate need to increase the level of ambition of funding from where we are now. Humankind simply cannot exist without Nature.
This panel, hosted by the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s Natural Capital Investment Alliance, will bring together senior decision markets to discuss the barriers to meeting the necessary level of investment and debate the emerging solutions and opportunities.
The Panel:
- Dr Helen Crowley, Managing Director, Pollination
- Abyd Karmali OBE, Managing Director; Climate Finance, Bank of America
- Ingrid Kukuljan, Head of Impact & Sustainable Investing, Federated Hermes
- Martin Berg, CEO, Climate Asset Management
Coastal Nature-based Solutions workshop
Tuesday 19 September, 8:00 – 10:00
RISE New York
Hosted by Pollination, the Sustainable Markets Initiative Financial Services Taskforce, Barclays, HSBC and BCG, this workshop will focus the combined knowledge and capabilities of public and private financiers, NGOs, insurers, lawyers and corporates to share insights and road test the preliminary elements of the FSTF/Pollination banking Practitioners Guide and the Mangrove Breakthrough finance roadmap. These two complementary tools seek to unlock the financial firepower of commercial capital as a key tool to protect nature and scale financing.
This event will include a panel including representatives from Pollination, the Climate Champions Team, World Bank and The Nature Conservancy, leading to a focused session of breakouts responding to case studies, content, risk mitigation considerations. The discussions will help shape and support the Mangrove Breakthrough Finance Roadmap and understand the most efficient ways to direct capital to coastal Nature-based Solutions from the complementary output being produced ahead of COP28.
The Panel:
- Veronica Chau, Partner & Director, Sustainable Finance, BCG (Moderator)
- Megan Flynn, Managing Director, Chief Growth & Impact Officer, Pollination
- Ignace Beguin, Ocean and Coastal Zones Lead) The Climate Change High-Level Champions
- Svetlana Klimenko, Lead Financial Management Specialist, Operations Policy and Country Services, World Bank)
- Daniel Shemie, Global Director, Resilient Watersheds, The Nature Conservancy
Biodiversity Credits: The strategic advantage of early action for businesses
Tommy Bahama Retail & Restaurant
8:30 – 10:00
Organisations are facing increasing social and regulatory pressure to make nature positive pledges and deliver upon nature positive targets. As voluntary biodiversity frameworks become increasingly mandated by governments and regulators, and biodiversity loss presents increasing risks to supply chains, the need for businesses to protect and restore biodiversity is even more acute.
Businesses are now in a race to become genuinely nature positive and are looking for robust solutions, but how does this provide a strategic advantage? Can organisations avoid greenwashing in their endeavours? How is government policy already driving nature positive investment in the UK and the US? What are the high-integrity options for corporations seeking biodiversity credits now? What do truly nature positive biodiversity restoration projects look like?
Pollination Managing Director Dr. Helen Crowley is speaking alongside representatives from the Environment Policy Innovation Centre, National Grid and the Environment Bank.
IIF Transition Finance Workshop
Tuesday 19 September, 12:00 – 16:00
UBS New York, 1875 Avenue of the Americas
The workshop will feature conversations with regulators and policymakers, as well as interactive case studies from leading financial firms focused on Net Zero Transition Planning and Practice.
Pollination Executive Director Matthew Cranford will be speaking at the event.
Advancing the Transition: What does a world in transition look like – and how do we navigate it?
Javits Centre, 38th Street & 11th Ave
12:45 – 18:30
Hosted by S&P Global at the Nest Summit, with a networking reception immediately following.
What does a world in transition look like – and how do we navigate it? S&P Global Sustainable1 will convene sustainability focused representatives from corporations, banking, investment management, and government to explore what’s needed to advance the transition, now.
Helen will be speaking at the 4:30pm panel titled ‘Nature Positive Transition’, moderated by Laure Smart. She will share her investor perspective regarding nature and biodiversity.
The Panel:
- Helen Crowley, Partner, Pollination Group
- Claire Lund, Global Vice President, Sustainability, GSK
- Camille Maclet, Consultant to the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, UN Biodiversity
- Lauren Smart, Chief Commercial Officer, S&P Global Sustainable1
Development in nature scenarios
Convene, 101 Park Ave
13:30 – 15:00
Along with the recommended disclosures, TNFD is releasing additional guidance on scenario analysis, among other topics. A range of work is now underway to make further progress on practical guidance, tools and advanced approaches to nature scenario analysis.
With a panel of experts, including representatives from companies that have already begun working with nature scenarios already, this session aims to bring the audience up to speed on the thinking and use of nature scenario analysis.
The Panel:
- Charlie Dixon, McKinsey & Co
- Julie McCarthy, NatureFinance
- Serafin Martínez Jaramillo, Banco de Mexico / NGFS
- Peter Bakker, WBCSD
- Guy Williams, Executive Director, Pollination
- Moderated by Emily McKenzie, TNFD
Australian Climate Tech Investment Opportunities
Wednesday 20 September, 17:00 – 19:30
American Australian Association, 34/600 Third Avenue
Austrade, Climate Zeitgeist and Pollination invite you to an exclusive event highlighting the opportunities to invest in scaleable climate technologies, and learn more about products and services across the key sectors of energy, carbon, climate tech, circular economy, mobility, agriculture, the blue economy and infrastructure. Representatives of investors, climate technology/solution providers and corporate leaders will discuss the opportunities to partner and collaborate within the Australian and US market.
The event will launch the Climate Investor Forum 2024, Australia’s premier climate investment forum in Melbourne, Australia in March 2024.
The panel:
- Megan Flynn, Managing Director-Chief Growth & Impact Officer, Pollination
- Kristin Ellis, Partner, Lowercarbon Capital
- Sam Elsom, CEO, Seaforest
- Christopher Magalhaes, Director, Wollemi Capital
- Peter Castellas, CEO Climate Zeitgeist (Moderator)
You can register here.
World Biodiversity Summit
Thursday 21 September, 09:00 – 17:00
SECOND, 849 Sixth Avenue
The World Biodiversity Summit returns on 21 September on the sidelines of UNGA 78 and Climate Week NYC.
It’s the pioneering platform for global public-private partnerships to address the urgent need for biodiversity restoration through Nature-based Solutions and nature-positive investments bridging climate and biodiversity agendas.
Now that the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework has been approved, it is time for implementation. That is why World Biodiversity Summit programme is designed to encourage companies and financial institutions to ensure sustainable production patterns and reduce risks while identifying opportunities derived from nature.
Pollination Managing Director Dr. Helen Crowley will be giving a keynote during the session ‘Catalysing Nature Markets – Aligning Investors, Projects and Biodiversity Goals’.
Register for the Summit here.
Accelerating the Net Zero Transition
731 Lexington Ave
13:30 – 15:30
The roundtable, hosted by Bloomberg LP, will bring together senior climate and sustainability leaders from across the private sector and EU leadership for an off-the-record exchange on how the EU is progressing its objectives to become the first climate-neutral continent, how these efforts interact with international policy actions such as the US Inflation Reduction Act, and what more is needed to support industry efforts to hit 2030 targets.
Participants include:
- Gavin Templeton, Managing Director, Pollination
- Maroš Šefčovič, European Commission Executive Vice President for the EU Green Deal, Inter-institutional Relations, and Foresight
- Jon Moore, CEO of BloombergNEF
