------------------------------------------------------------------------ Issue 11 June/July 2002 http://unepfi.net/ebulletin EVENT OUTCOMES 1. UNEP FI 2001-2002 Global Dialogue Finalised in Budapest 2. Knowledge Gap Equals Opportunity for Sustainable Venture Finance 3. Joint Workshop on Foreign Direct Investment - UNEP FI / UNEP Post Conflict Assessment Unit MEMBER SHOWCASE 4. Four New Members Join UNEP FI ACTIVITIES 5. Launch of the UNEP FI African Task Force 6. Joint UNEP FI - World Bank - IMF Report Presented at OECD Conference EVENT WIRE 7. First annual International Emerging Markets Finance Conference (12-13 September, 2002 - Manchester, UK) 8. Financing SMEs in Central-Eastern Europe Conference (26 September, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary) 9. International Conference on SRI in Asia (28-30 October, 2002 - Tokyo, Japan) NEWS 10. FTSE4Good Announces Tougher Environmental Criteria ADVERTISING For information on creative advertising opportunities in this or other publications from the United Nations Environment Programme?s Finance Initiatives please contact fi@unep.ch ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- EVENT OUTCOMES 1. UNEP FI 2001-2002 Global Dialogue Finalised in Budapest 24-25 June, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary Presentations online at: http://unepfi.net/ceit In April 2001 UNEP FI began a series of global outreach events in Manila, The Philippines. The events strengthened UNEP FI's presence and links with sustainable finance networks worldwide. The events continued in Santiago, Chile (November 2001), Midrand, South Africa (January 2002), and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (March 2002). The series was finalized on June 24th-25th in Budapest, Hungary with a two day event focussing on the Countries with Economies in Transition (CEIT). Many leading finance, business, governmental and civil society speakers from the CEIT region joined UNEP FI in the Hilton Hotel, Budapest, Hungary for what became a very successful and stimulating event. The discussion of cutting edge finance and sustainable development issues along with the opportunity to network with creative thinkers and opinion leaders in this critical area created the foundation for a "not to be missed" conference. The outcome and recommendations secured in Budapest will be consolidated with those gained in the outreach events to provide a pragmatic regional to global voice for our presentations at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg this August/September. Contact Niamh O? Sullivan (niamh.o.sullivan@unep.ch) 2. Knowledge Gap Equals Opportunity for Sustainable Venture Financiers 7-8 June, 2002 - Fontainebleau, France Presentations online at: http://unepfi.net/venture INSEAD, the French business school, and UNEP FI hosted a one and a half day workshop on sustainable venture finance and entrepreneurship. Over 80 representatives debated whether and when it is profitable to invest in sustainability-oriented venture capital funds and entrepreneurial ventures. Alan Gillespie, CEO of the UK group CDC Capital Partners, who also sponsored the event, gave the keynote address. He spoke about the challenge of providing sustainable enterprise capital to emerging markets while also seeking competitive returns in a bear market. Participants decided to begin a research programme and network based on the outcomes of the workshop and asked INSEAD and UNEP FI to host ?Sustainable Venture Finance 2? on May 29, 30 ? 2003 to report on their progress. Contact Jacob Malthouse (malthouj@unep.ch) 3. Foreign Direct Investment: Financing Sustainability 19-20 June, 2002 ? Belgrade, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) presentations online at http://www.unepfi.net/belgrade Expanding its experience in Economies in Transition, UNEP FI recently co-organized a workshop on ?Foreign Direct Investment: Financing Sustainability? in Belgrade, FRY. Working closely with the UNEP Post Conflict Assessment Unit (PCAU), the workshop was developed at the request of the Ministry of Health and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Serbia (SMHEP) and supported by the Government of FRY. The aim of the workshop was to introduce key stakeholders in Serbia and Montenegro to the opportunities and challenges associated with Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The workshop highlighted public-private partnership approaches and innovative financing mechanisms supporting FDI in FRY. An understanding was also developed of how to boost capacity within public and private constituencies within FRY to attract the ?right kind? of FDI - dynamic, productive investments that respect high environmental and sustainability standards. Contact Trevor Bowden (trevor.bowden@unep.ch) MEMBER SHOWCASE 4. Four New Members Sign Up to UNEP FI UNEP FI welcomes four new members to its Financial Institutions Initiative: SanPaolo IMI S.P.A, based in Italy, provides the full range of banking and financial services to corporate clients through over 1,350 branches in Italy and 11 branches abroad. Contact Damiano Accattoli (damiano.accattoli@sanpaoloimi.com) Standard Chartered Bank, with headquarters in London, has its main business in Personal Banking, Corporate and Institutional Banking, and Treasury. It is ranked among the best 100 British companies to work for. Contact Robert Tacon (robert.tacon@uk.standardchartered.com) Black Emerald Group, based in Switzerland, is a boutique investment banking firm for renewable energy and environmental technology companies and projects worldwide. Contact Sven Hansen (sven.hansen@blackemerald.com) FSB International Bank Plc is the first bank from Nigeria to endorse the UNEP FI statement. FSB International?s vision is to be the leading Nigerian provider of specialized financial services. Contact Sven Hansen (svenmhansen@yahoo.co.uk) ACTIVITIES 5. Launch of the UNEP FI African Taskforce (ATF) Following the UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event in Midrand, January 2002, an African Taskforce has been launched, which will help to promote UNEP FI's mission with a specific regional focus. Mr. Cas Coovadia, Banking Council of South Africa, and Mr. Sean de Cleene, African Institute of Corporate Citizenship, have recently been appointed Chair and Co-Chair, respectively, of the ATF. They will be assisted by a 15 member strong steering committee - made up of African financial sector representatives and associates - and a broader multistakeholder taskforce to meet the challenges of the newly agreed work programme. This ambitious work programme will initially aim to address the setting of "sustainability" priorities for the African financial sector, the potential to establish general standards or codes of conduct on such issues as socially responsible investment (SRI) and the overall integration of a triple bottom line approach to the operations of the African financial sector. In addition, the ATF aspires to recognise and, where possible integrate, pressing cultural and political problems e.g. HIV/AIDS, labour protection and poverty alleviation, into the overall work mandate of the group, therefore enhancing the practical relevance of the ATF and complementing the recent establishment of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) (http://www.nepad.org/) 6. Joint UNEP FI - World Bank - IMF Report presented at OECD Conference In collaboration with the World Bank and the IMF, UNEP FI is producing a joint report entitled ?Financing for Sustainable Development?. A consultation draft of the paper was launched at the OECD conference ?Financing the Environmental Aspects of Sustainable Development? (24-26 April, 2002 - Paris). The report is broken down into three parts, which look at experiences, lessons and possibilities under the themes of attracting private sector finance, generating public resources, and public - private partnerships. Participants at the OECD conference welcomed it as an interesting input to the environment - finance debate. The final version of the report, which is an initiative of the UNEP Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE), will be part of UNEP?s contribution to WSSD. Carlos Joly of Storebrand, chair of the UNEP Insurance Industry Initiative (UNEP III), was a speaker at the OECD conference. His presentation on the ?Why? and ?How? of Socially Responsible Investing is available at http://unepfi.net/press/CJolyoecd_05.2002_unepfi.pdf. Contact Mareike Hussels (mareike.hussels@unep.ch) EVENT WIRE 7. First Annual International Emerging Markets Finance Conference 12-13 September, 2002 - Manchester, UK www.acia.sun.ac.za The Emerging Markets Research Centre at the University of Salford in the UK, the Emerging Markets Finance Association, the Africa Centre for Investment Analysis (ACIA), and the University of Stellenbosch Business School, SA, are organising this First Annual International Emerging Markets Finance Conference to meet the urgent need for proper debates and research into emerging markets crises. "Managing Financial Crises in Emerging Markets in a Global Environment" is the theme of the two day conference at the Golden Tulip Manchester Hotel in Manchester, UK. It will aim to discuss: - the management of currency, inflation, exchange rates, and stock markets crises - the impact of crisis on small businesses, the global economy, poverty alleviation and trade & investment. - strategies for minimising future crisis using risk management models. Contact Lidia du Plessis (lidia@acia.sun.ac.za) 8. Conference on Financing SMEs in Central-Eastern Europe 26 September, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary www.budapestbusinesscenter.com The objective of the conference is to identify the opportunities for financing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Central-Eastern Europe (CEE), to find solutions for the issues of poor capitalization and financing, building on the experiences in the EU and the US. These issues are major barriers to SMEs becoming a driving force of the transition to the knowledge-based economy in CEE. - the thematic framework of the conference: - SMEs as the backbone of producing GDP & as partners of multinational corporations - capitalization and credit-worthiness of the SMEs & Banks? credit policy for SMEs - the role of institutional investors and of governments to solve the financing problem of SMEs Key speakers are Mr. Péter Medgyessy Prime Minister of Hungry, Mr. Jean-Paul Mingasson Director General, European Commission Enterprise, Ms. Noreen Doyle, First Vice President of EBRD, Mr. István Csillag Minister of Economic Affairs of Hungary. Contact Ms. Eniko Nagy and Bancraft Kft (office@bancraft.com) Participation fee:115 ? (28 000 HUF+VAT) 9. International Conference on SRI in Asia 28-30 October, 2002 - Tokyo, Japan www.asria.org/events/japan/oct02 The Association for Sustainable and Responsible Investment in Asia (ASrIA), UNEP FI?s partner in Asia-Pacific, will hold the first international SRI conference in Japan in collaboration with UNEP FI. ASrIA, which held its inaugural conference in November 2001, is the only forum for SRI in Asia, and its rapid growth to date - currently ASrIA includes 62 members - is an indication of the growing level of interest in SRI in Asia. The ASrIA website (www.asria.org) has developed into the ?go-to? site for SRI information and contacts in Asia. At the conference, delegates from Europe and the Americas will have the chance to better acquaint themselves with the Asian perspective on SRI priorities for the region, while those attending from Asia have the chance to learn about current developments in the region and elsewhere. Speakers will include SRI practitioners, corporations, financial institutions and civil society groups from across the globe, especially from Japan and the rest of Asia. Contact Tessa Tennant (tessa@asria.org) NEWS 10. FTSE4Good Announces Tougher Environmental Criteria http://www.ftse4good.com In March 2002 the global equities index firm FTSE held a first major review of the selection criteria for its FTSE4Good index. As a result the ground rules are being updated ? starting with the adoption of more stringent environmental criteria that were announced on May 21. The timetable for their introduction foresees the following steps: September 2002: All companies in the indices receive environmental impact grading of high, medium, low, depending on business type. March 2003: All medium and low impact companies must have a publicly available environmental policy. September 2003: All medium impact companies must provide evidence of an environmental management system. New entrants to the indices are required to fulfil the full set of criteria by September 2003. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- END. The UNEP FI e-bulletin is a monthly publication of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiatives. United Nations Environment Programme Division of Technology, Industry and Economics Economics and Trade Branch Finance Initiatives Unit Editors: Jacob Malthouse malthouj@unep.ch Mareike Hussels mareike.hussels@unep.ch Assistant Editor: Kiki Lawal kiki.lawal@unep.ch Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of UNEP or UNEP FI, or of its signatories, nor does UNEP FI or its signatories take any responsibility for actions taken as a result of views or opinions expressed in this publication. Copyright 2002 - UNEP FI