23 August 2022, Geneva – UNEP FI and Building Bridges are joining forces to bring together two weeks of sustainable finance events in October for the international finance community. The events, running from 3-14 October will bring together 6000+ finance professionals to tackle issues including climate change, impact management, conflict, biodiversity loss, food security, human rights, and economic recovery.
Building Bridges will take place from 3-6 October at the Centre International de Conférences Geneva (CICG) and online, showcasing dynamic approaches to align financial products with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 2022 edition will open with a high-level Summit, exploring finance for nature and climate change, innovation in sovereign debt management, as well as agriculture and land use. The Building Bridges Summit will be held on 3-4 October, and feature internationally renowned experts and thought leaders such as Emmanuel Faber from the International Sustainability Standards Board, Nick Robins from the London School of Economics and Political Science, Margaret Kulhow from WWF International, David Nabarro from Skills, Systems & Synergies for Sustainable Development, Beatrice Weder di Mauro from the Centre for Economic Policy Research, Peter Bakker from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, and many other speakers. The Building Bridges Week will run from October 4-6 and host 65 community-led discussions, workshops, roundtables, presentations and training sessions, covering themes such as climate change, emerging markets, fintech, impact, social investments, transparency and accountability.
The following week, UNEP FI’s 17th Global Roundtable (GRT), a major global agenda-setting event on sustainable finance will be held on 10-14 October. Held under the theme of “Transforming Finance, Accelerating Change”, this online-only event will bring together decision-makers, experts and thought leaders on a virtual event platform to help shape approaches to integrating sustainability across the banking, insurance and investment industries. UNEP FI’s Global Roundtable consistently serves as a pivotal event in finance industry action, providing attendees an opportunity to collaborate with peers, demonstrate leadership, and learn from global financial leaders. This year’s Global Roundtable will provide a platform for fostering systemic impact and address critical emerging topics including portfolio alignment, adaptation, impact management and connectivity between the finance sector and the real economy. This year’s speakers include former US Vice-President Al Gore, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance Mark Carney, Chair of the Network for Greening the Financial System Ravi Menon, Allianz CEO Oliver Baete, UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen and Architect of the Paris Agreement Christiana Figueres.
About Building Bridges:
Building Bridges is a joint initiative launched by public and private entities in 2019 in Geneva to advance sustainable finance. The mission of the initiative is to connect the finance and international community in order to accelerate the transition to a global economic model aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals. More than an event, Building Bridges aims to stimulate international debate and shape the global sustainable finance agenda from Geneva. By creating synergies between diverse actors and sectors, Building Bridges facilitates the emergence of concrete solutions to mobilize capital flows towards projects that support the SDGs. Founded by the Swiss Government, the City and the Canton of Geneva, Sustainable Finance Geneva (SFG), Swiss Sustainable Finance (SSF), the Geneva Financial Center (GFC), Swiss Banking, Asset Management Association Switzerland (AMAS), The United Nations, UNEP-FI, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), the Financial Center for Sustainability (FC4S), and NGOs (including WWF, Peace Nexus, IISD), Building Bridges benefits from the expertise of a large network of international and private actors to address global challenges.
About UNEP FI:
UNEP Finance Initiative is a large and influential network of banks, insurers and investors that collectively catalyses action across the financial system to deliver more sustainable global economies. For more than 30 years the initiative has been bringing the UN together with financial institutions from around the world to shape the sustainable finance agenda. We’ve established the world’s foremost sustainability frameworks that help the finance industry address global environmental, social and governance (ESG) challenges.
Convened by a Geneva, Switzerland-based secretariat, more than 400 banks and insurers with assets exceeding US$80 trillion work together to facilitate the implementation of UNEP FI’s Principles for Responsible Banking and Principles for Sustainable Insurance, as well as three UN-convened net-zero alliances. Financial institutions work with UNEP FI on a voluntary basis and we help them to apply the industry frameworks and develop practical guidance and tools to position their businesses for the transition to a sustainable and inclusive economy.
Founded in 1992, UNEP FI was the first organisation to engage the finance sector on sustainability and incubated the Principles for Responsible Investment, now the world’s leading proponent on responsible investment. Today, we cultivate leadership and advance sustainable market practice and support implementation of global programmes at a regional level across Africa & the Middle East, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America & the Caribbean and North America.