The Mediterranean is one of the world’s areas most vulnerable to climate change and nature loss. Rising temperatures, water scarcity, ecosystem degradation and pressure on coastal economies are already impacting financial institutions by affecting asset values, insurability and credit quality. While regulatory contexts differ across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, economies across these regions share similarities including interconnected value chains, reliance on tourism and agriculture, and a large numbers of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). As a result, sustainability is increasingly important for both competitiveness and resilience.

Against this backdrop, UNEP FI convened the inaugural Mediterranean Forum on 13-14 October 2026 in Athens, hosted by Piraeus Bank, bringing together senior representatives from financial institutions, regulators, businesses, UN agencies and regional organizations. Discussions focused on sustainability and competitiveness, transition planning and client engagement, and the climate-nature nexus. Key takeaways that emerged from the sessions include:

  • Sustainability and competitiveness are complementary objectives. Institutions and businesses best positioned for the future are those already managing transition and physical risks while integrating sustainability into their core strategies. Participants recognized common pressures to balance client needs, growth targets and investor expectations, yet sustainability is widely viewed as a source of opportunity and enhanced competitiveness. Technological innovations across sustainability topics are opening new areas of growth, but realizing these opportunities will require stronger data capabilities, client engagement and partnerships, as well as clear support from senior leadership.
  • Data is both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is not only collecting data but making it comparable and useful for real decisions on risk, transition planning, investment, disclosures and to help identify opportunities for financial institutions. With nature, the data gap is wider: financial institutions need geospatial data to locate their clients’ assets and understand the exposures, and clients are also at early stage of understanding their dependencies and impacts.
  • Client engagement will determine success, and credible transition plans are central to it. Transition plans are starting to inform credit and investment decisions, while rising supervisory expectations, such as those of some central banks like the European Central Bank, are raising the bar. However, enabling policies and incentives beyond the financial sector are also needed. Practical engagement, capacity building, technical assistance and accessible financing solutions are key, with particular attention paid to SMEs, the backbone of most Mediterranean economies. As many SMEs remain outside the banking system, participants highlighted the need for exploring financing solutions that reflect local realities.
  • Nature must be part of the conversation. Across the Mediterranean, coastal ecosystems, biodiversity and the blue economy are both economic assets and growing sources of risk. While nature and biodiversity risks are becoming drivers of change, barriers such as geopolitics, limited innovation and project pipelines, and lack of interoperability between classification still exist. Practical routes forward include a focus on developing nature transition plans, client and community engagement, technical assistance, and a stronger focus on bankability. Discussions also highlighted the interconnectedness of nature and climate with ecosystem degradation compounding climate impacts, increasing the vulnerability of communities and economies. A holistic, system-wide approach is required to tackle these challenges and increase resilience of people, planet and economies.
  • Partnerships are indispensable. No single institution can solve these challenges alone. Progress depends on collaboration between financial institutions, regulators, development partners and other public and private actors. Derisking instruments and project development assistance from development institutions can help turn ideas into bankable projects, while local partners can prove highly valuable in markets with different national priorities.


Moving forward


The Mediterranean is a region of contrasts, but the discussions in Athens showed that it is also a region of shared ambition: one sea, many realities, and increasingly a common agenda for a resilient, competitive and sustainable Mediterranean economy.


Several priorities for continued work were identified to address the region’s challenges and strengthen its resilience: peer learning between institutions from across the Mediterranean, advancing transition planning, scaling energy efficiency, exploring nature positive finance and blue economy opportunities and strengthening collaboration with regional partners such as UNEP MAP and Plan Bleu.


The Forum reflects UNEP FI’s role as a global convenor and highlights the importance of partnerships with members banks, insurers and stakeholders from across the finance sector. UNEP FI will continue support members with practical tools, guidance and opportunities to help translate ambition into implementation and measurable impact.




Please stay tuned for further announcements regarding the upcoming UNEP FI Regional Roundtables in 2027 including for the Africa & Middle East and Europe regions.


UNEP FI thanks Piraeus Bank for hosting the Forum, as well as all speakers, moderators, participants and partners for their contributions.


The Forum was convened under the Chatham House Rule. This summary reflects the themes and questions raised during the discussions. It does not attribute views to individual participants or institutions, and it does not represent an agreed position of any participating organization.