This year’s global Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (‘COP23’) will take place in Bonn, Germany, from 6 – 17 November. While it is the second COP focused on implementation of the historic Paris Agreement (PA), it also serves a significant political function: it will mark the starting point of a year-long process towards the key and so-called Facilitative Dialogue at COP24 in 2018. The intergovernmental community will aim to use the event platform to raise the ambition of countries’ nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Currently the level of ambition of all NDCs falls significantly short – by an estimated annual gap in 2030 of 12 GtCO2e – to steer the world onto a 2-degrees, ‘climate-safe’ pathway. Persisting non-state calls, as well as commitments, to climate action – including from the financial community – can play a powerful signaling role in ratcheting up ambition.

To that effect, UNEP FI and partners are building a strong presence at COP23, via a number of events and platforms including the following:

 

13 November – high-level segments of Finance Day

11:30-13:00: Mobilizing investment to support NDC implementation and increased ambition

The panel will look at the supply of climate finance, and will showcase governments, companies and financial institutions that are leading the way in delivering successful climate financing solutions and evolving their governance and business models to address the opportunities and risks created by climate change.

Speakers (some TBC):

  • Nicholas Stern, Chair, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics
  • Jim Kim, Group President/CEO World Bank Group
  • Bruno Le Maire, Minister of Finance, France
  • Tom DiNapoli, New York State Comptroller
  • Denise Pavarina, CEO, Bradesco (TBC)

 

15:00 -16:30: Accelerating investor actions to implement the Paris Agreement and accelerate the low-carbon transition to below 2 degrees

The event will showcase how investors and the finance sector are changing their own practices, and working with companies and governments, to deliver the Paris Agreement and accelerate the low-carbon transition. It will feature concrete examples of investor action across a range of activities, including investor practices, disclosure, engagement with companies, and policy.
Speakers (some TBC):

  • Erik Solheim, Head, UN Environment
  • Saker Nusseibeh, Hermes
  • Anthony Hobley, CEO, Carbon Tracker
  • Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary, UNFCCC
  • Corien Wortmann-Kool, Chairman of the Board, ABP

 

14 November (timing TBC) – One-UN side event on climate finance
Co-convened by UN Environment, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the UN Development Programme, the focus of this event will be how public and private finance can best blend for implementation of the NDCs. Or in other words: how finance ministries, financial regulators, and development banks can help shift private markets and private financial flows into alignment with climate goals.

 

14 November – High-level roundtable on Energy Efficiency Finance and Investment, Ministry of Environment, Bonn, Germany

12:00 – 15:00: At this high-level roundtable, the Energy Efficiency Finance Task Group will convene G20 policy and finance community stakeholders to discuss the G20 Energy Efficiency Investment Toolkit as well as to present and share latest developments on the implementation of innovative policies, financial products and tools that enable greater deployment of energy efficiency finance. The G20 EEFTG would also like to use this opportunity to invite participants to explore avenues of further development and engagement with the G20 and the Latin American region under the Argentinian presidency.

Participation is by invitation only. To participate, please email Martin Schoenberg, Energy Efficiency Project Coordinator, at martin.schoenberg (at) un.org

 

15 November – side event on the TCFD
11:30 – 13:00: Mainstreaming climate information flows to and from financial markets – the promise of the TCFD
The event will discuss the potentials and promise of the TCFD recommendations to fully integrate climate factors into financial decision-making by companies, lenders, investors, and their ultimate depositors and beneficiaries.
For more information on these events, please contact us on climate@unepfi.org.

16 November – High-level Green Finance Dialogue
The Sustainable Stock Exchanges is convening a high-level dialogue on Green Finance. In the morning of this full day event CEOs and government officials will discuss the challenges and opportunities of green finance. Following a networking lunch, the afternoon will feature four technical workshops where international experts will be on hand to share the latest state of the art in green finance. For more information and to register click here.

Getting accredited and joining UNEP FI’s COP23 delegation:

Please get in touch with climate@unepfi.org if you are interested in receiving, via UNEP FI, accreditation for COP23. Accreditation is required for access to conference premises. Please get in touch before 25 October.