Capacity-building Alliance of Sustainable Investment (CASI)’s Post

COP29 Azerbaijan Countdown begins! ⌛ In the spirit of Malaysia's chairmanship of ASEAN in 2025, I am honoured to moderate this panel discussion on financing carbon projects in the ASEAN region. You probably already know that the ASEAN region houses 3 out of world’s 17 mega-biodiverse 🌱🐛 countries, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. In order to protect biodiversity and support the energy transition, nature-based and technology-based carbon credits can assist the ASEAN region as instruments to attract funding to commercialize decarbonisation projects. You probably also know that achieving Net Zero continues to require the mobilisation of large amounts of capital to achieve meaningful emissions reductions and removals. Financing carbon projects at the rate we need continues to be challenging. This panel discussion explores the current landscape of carbon project financing, addresses how projects can sustain development costs and how developers are currently raising funds. The panel will also explore innovative financing instruments underpinned by the principle of responsible financing that can meaningfully scale up deployment of carbon projects within the ASEAN region. We welcome you to join us as we love to hear your views as well. See you soon and here are the logistic details: What: The Buck Stops Here: Unlocking Responsible Financing for ASEAN Carbon Projects When: 16 November 2024, @ 1:00 am - 12 noon (GMT+4) Where: Malaysia Pavilion, E11, Blue Zone Who: ●     Björn Fondén, International Policy Advisor, IETA ●     Mark Kenber, Executive Director, Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative ●     Edward Rumsey, Managing Partner, Permian Global ●     Asif Cheema, Director of Private Sector Financial Institutions, Asian Development Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) ●     Arshad Nuval Othman, Head of Sustainable Finance, CIMB Islamic Bank https://lnkd.in/gWa_pwV6

SMU Sustainable Investment’s first article of our new series, SI Digest, is out!! As with each year’s COP, commitments and policies are reviewed and new initiatives implemented. This article focuses on Singapore’s sustainability initiatives moving forward. Huge shout-out to Clive Tan and Jorden Lim for co-writing this piece!

#ICYMI: At the COP SG Pavilion last week, Mr Leong Sing Chiong, Deputy Managing Director (Markets & Development), MAS, spoke on achieving scale and impact in transition finance - through innovative solutions in blended finance and carbon markets, and putting in place enablers to strengthen and sustain capital flows across borders and segments of the economy. MAS also provided updates on 3 key green and sustainable financing initiatives: #1 The Singapore Government will commit up to US$500 million in concessional funding to support the Financing Asia’s Transition Partnership (FAST-P). FAST-P also established a new Industrial Transformation infrastructure debt programme, in addition to the Energy Transition Acceleration Finance partnership and Green Investments partnership that were announced at COP28, and engaged managers to implement these three pillars. #2 The Multi-Jurisdiction Common Ground Taxonomy (M-CGT). The M-CGT builds on the bilateral EU-China Common Ground Taxonomy (CGT) published in June 2022, and incorporates the mapping of the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy, enhancing the interoperability of taxonomies across EU, China and Singapore. The M-CGT serves as a common baseline for market participants to refer to in defining green activities, enabling cross border financing in the markets that the respective taxonomies serve. #3 The release of the Transition Credits Coalition’s (TRACTION) interim report on the use of transition credits to accelerate the early retirement of coal-fired power plants (CFPPs). The report highlights key learnings from TRACTION’s discussions over the past year, on how to: (i) support the generation of high-integrity transition credits; (ii) enable transaction scalability; and (iii) bolster buyers’ confidence and trust. Find out more below: COP29 Finance Day opening remarks: https://lnkd.in/gi7-Vaw8 FAST-P: https://lnkd.in/gsc62z3t M-CGT: https://lnkd.in/gRr5e_hd TRACTION interim report: https://lnkd.in/gcygF3Sx #COP29SGPavilion #COP29 #COP29Azerbaijan

“We have the science ready; we have the money. But there is a knowledge gap among different stakeholders,” - Sophia Cheng Chief Investment Officer, Cathay Financial Holdings Co., Ltd. COP29 Azerbaijan has been dubbed the ‘finance COP’ as negotiations centres on establishing a new global climate finance goal—something last addressed at COP15 in Copenhagen 15 years ago. The new collective quantified goal will replace COP15’s USD 100 billion annual target set in 2009. With rising needs, these negotiations are crucial, as developing countries now require between USD 500 billion and over USD 1 trillion annually to mitigate and adapt to climate change. But how can we accelerate financing for the green transition? The funds are there, so how can we ensure they are implemented faster? Today at the Denmark Pavilion, our focus on the official COP29 finance day has been to address these questions. Our schedule has been packed with finance-focused events by some of our valued partners: Cathay Financial Holdings Co., Ltd., Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping, A.P. Moller - Maersk,  Investment Mobilisation Collaboration Alliance, World Climate Foundation, Velliv, Udenrigsministeriet, ServiceNow, Danmarks Eksport- og Investeringsfond, Ørsted, Lederne - Danmarks største lederorganisation and V.Group. We look forward to continue the discussions at upcoming events and follow the outcomes of these crucial finance negotiations. #COP29 #DKatCOP #PublicPrivateAction

We believe that if a company like ours adheres to environmental, social, and elevated management standards, it increases our access to new sources of capital, improves the trust of our consumers and our government partners, and provides for an overall better reputation in the market. Ultimately, while these ESG principles are important for our business , the real winners here are our children, and our society in general, who can count on a company like ours to help provide for a safer and more reliable future. For a growing group of investors, ESG ratings are becoming an increasing factor in their investment making decision process…almost as important as credit agency ratings. ESG rankings characterize a company's activities, its ability to cope with risks and challenges in the long term, its ability to be sustainable, and to be in alignment with all stakeholders. Understanding if a company is in harmony with the world around it can be a marker of how it manages its operational and reputational risks, how toxic it is, and whether it is possible to negotiate and work with it. You can believe me when I tell you that the ESG principles of human resource management become very important when you work with a team of over 7000 individuals around the world! In our region, when we build a business with a 10-20-year vision, we also want to ensure that our government partners achieve higher credit ratings as well. In doing so, this acts as a predicate for creating dialogue and business negotiations both domestically and abroad. That’s why in 2024 alone, we invested $82 million in 52 ESG projects in Kazakhstan and in conjunction with our equally important IT investments. On November 12, at the COP29 World Climate Summit, in which our President, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, is participating, we signed two new ESG agreements. The first is with the Ministry of Ecology of the Republic of Kazakhstan where we will work together to restore the population of the unique Turan tiger (and we will create a very cool looking 💳 to go with it!) as we look to implement the best technologies and practices in management of natural resources of Kazakhstan to do so. The second is with Open Forest AG for development of carbon certification in our country. The ESG concept in business is an enormous topic…it’s also an enormous opportunity, and one we don’t intend to miss! #Kazakhstan #Qazaqstan #esg #cop29

🌍 As Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) joins world leaders and climate stakeholders in Baku, we’re sharing our ambitious COP29 Azerbaijan Asks, designed to accelerate a global shift to a net-zero and nature-positive future. Our Asks focus on: 1️⃣ 💸 Climate Finance: Set a globally inclusive finance goal, enabling rapid access to climate funds in developing economies. 2️⃣ 📊 National Climate Plans (NDCs): Drive scalable, private-sector investments aligned with national climate ambitions. 3️⃣ 🌱 High-Integrity Carbon Markets: Ensure credible and equitable carbon markets for transparent, quality climate solutions. 4️⃣ 🌊 Loss and Damage Fund: Establish a fund backed by private capital to build resilience for affected communities. 🔎 Explore our Asks here: https://lnkd.in/e8REvcpM 📅 Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) will also host and participate in events during #COP29, including: 📌 Sustainable Innovation Forum 2024 – 13-14 November 2024, COP29, Baku, Azerbaijan, hosted by Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) and Climate Action 📌 The move to clean energy systems: accelerating electrification and tripling renewables through business policy advocacy - 15 November 2024, COP29, Baku, Azerbaijan, hosted by Corporate Leaders Groups and Corporate Leaders Network 📌 Derisking emerging markets' transition finance at scale (closed door roundtable) - 15 November 2024, COP29, Baku, Azerbaijan, hosted by Jessica Attard, Deputy Director, Centre for Sustainable Finance (CISL) 🔗 You can find all of our events here: https://lnkd.in/d59mDz8h #COP29Baku #CISLCOP29 #CambridgeForOurPlanet

📣 Ahead of #COP29, the Business Breakthrough Barometer by WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development warns that without bold government policy, the next wave of large-scale investments in the net zero transition is at risk 📈 🚧 66% of business leaders state that the investment case and infrastructure are the main barriers to acceleration, with current policy and market structures not effectively rewarding investments in low-carbon technologies.  ⬆️ 90% of those surveyed say they would invest more if governments implemented policies to address sector-specific barriers. This is a call for Governments to act now with bold policies to enable this new wave of opportunity. Read here ➡️ www.wbcsd.org/barometer #BusinessBreakthroughBarometer

🌍 Nature is Our Economy's Backbone!🌍 Humans are an intrinsic part of nature, and our economic activity hinges on it. From the air we breathe to the resources we use, everything stems from the beauty of our natural world. 💡 **The Call for Action:** Finance can be the catalyst for transitioning towards nature-positive outcomes. We have the power to **scale up green finance**, **mobilize investment in nature-based solutions**, and **reduce harmful financial flows** that jeopardize our environment. But finance can be just a part of the solution. It’s time to debunk the credibility and viability gap - we can make a difference! ✅ Let’s utilize our resources wisely and create a sustainable future. We have all we need to make this happen! 🙏 for the great event Rym Ayadi Nathalie Hilmi Torsten Thiele Alejandro Lafarga Martinez Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association - EMEA ✨ Share your thoughts below! Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank Private Bank #GreenFinance #Sustainability #NaturePositive #EconomicGrowth #InvestmentInNature #Macroeconomics

Progress on #mitigating and #adapting to #climate change and protecting #nature requires a fundamental transformation in financing models. With the #G20 and #COP30 taking place in #Brazil, we have an excellent opportunity to shape the agenda for the better. To this end, we’re delighted to announce that the first ever Brazilian Climate Finance Forum is taking place from 26-27 February in São Paulo. Organized jointly by Instituto Igarapé in partnership with Instituto Arapyaú, Institute for Climate and Society, Itaúsa, AYA Earth Partners, Open Society Foundations and Uma Concertação pela Amazônia, it brings together national and international representatives from government, the private sector, civil society, and multilateral organizations to accelerate investment. The Brazilian Cilmate Finance Forum was announced last year during #COP28 in Dubai with the Ministry of Finance. It is taking place on the eve of the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting and is an official event of the Social G20. At the heart of the agenda is the need for critical investment in a green and just ecological transition, including nature-based financial solutions, and incentives to rapidly accelerate an inclusive #bioeconomy. Register on the official website to attend in person on the first day of the event or to follow the live broadcast: https://lnkd.in/dEqD3EKS. #climatesecurity #BRClimateFinanceForum #greentransition #g20

*COP29: Day 4* A big announcement at COP29 today. Azerbaijan (through Mr. Zakir Nuriyev, President of the Azerbaijan Banks Association) announced a significant financial commitment to fund green projects to support the country’s transition to a low-carbon economy. A pledge of 2 billion AZN / 1.2 billion USD was made for the development of green projects until 2030. The pledge will be used to fund projects that will contribute to Azerbaijan's transition to a low-carbon economy. Second development was the COP29 Presidency launching the Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment, and Trade (BICFIT) Dialogue which will be co-led by UNDP, UNCTAD in collaboration with the WTO Secretariat and ITC. The BICFIT Dialogue is meant to ensure Finance, Investment, and Trade sit at the centre of the climate-change agenda discussions to support UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement objectives. Another major development was the launch of the Business, Investment and Philanthropy Climate Platform (BIPCP), by COP29 High Level Climate Champion Nigar Arpadarai, which aims to unite leaders from business, finance and philanthropic communities to drive practical, collaborative, near-term action to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. The platform focuses on finance, building on the success of the COP28 Business and Philanthropy Forum held in Dubai in 2023. These developments are great for this year’s COP main objective. To reiterate again, COP29 want world leaders to reach a historic deal on climate finance, especially for developing countries. We continue to watch the space!!