EMEA Side Event at COP29 – Nature Finance: Catalyzing Green and Nature-Based Solutions while Addressing Nature-Negative Finance

The growing recognition of the urgent need to address environmental degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss has spurred interest in nature finance. Nature finance is the strategic mobilization of capital toward projects and initiatives that preserve, restore, or sustainably manage ecosystems while addressing climate challenges. It encompasses several key elements, including green finance, nature-based solution finance, and the identification and reduction of nature-negative finance.

This event seeks to highlight the opportunities and challenges in nature finance, providing a platform for dialogue on how financial systems can be realigned to protect the planet while generating economic returns.

The purpose of this event is to explore how finance can drive a transition towards nature-positive outcomes, including the scaling up of green finance, the mobilization of capital for nature-based solutions, and the reduction of harmful financial flows that degrade the environment. The event will bring together key stakeholders from the financial sector, governments, international organizations, and environmental NGOs to examine the current landscape and identify innovative pathways for increasing nature-friendly investments.

Key Discussion Points:

1. Green Finance and Its Role in Sustainability: How green bonds, climate finance, and sustainability-linked loans are being used to fund renewable energy, energy efficiency, and low-carbon infrastructure.
2. Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) Finance: The critical role of nature-based solutions in climate resilience and biodiversity protection, and the growing market for NbS-related investments.
3. Tackling Nature-Negative Finance: Identifying sectors and financial activities that harm the environment, such as deforestation, fossil fuel subsidies, and unsustainable agricultural practices, and discussing how financial flows can be redirected toward nature-positive outcomes.
4. Policy and Regulatory Frameworks: How governments and regulatory bodies can incentivize nature-positive finance, including tax incentives, carbon pricing, and penalties for nature-negative activities.
5. Private Sector and Investor Engagement: The role of institutional investors, asset managers, and corporations in driving green and nature-based finance through Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing, impact investing, and corporate sustainability commitments.

Agenda

Opening remarks by Prof. Rym Ayadi, Founder and president, EMEA – moderator of the event

Panel discussion: (TBC)

1. Torsten Thiele, Founder, Global Ocean Trust and Senior Advisor, Blue Carbon Accelerator Fund, EMEA Advisor
2. Markus Muller, Chief Investment Officer ESG & Global Head of Chief Investment Office, Deutsche Bank
3. Nathalie Hilmi, Section Head of Environmental Economics, Centre Scientific de Monaco, EMEA Advisor
4. Ekkehard Ernst, Chief of the Macroeconomic Policy Unit, International Labour Organization, President of Geneva Macro Labs
5. Alejandro Alejandro Lafarga, Programme Officer of the Interreg NEXT MED Programme for the Western Mediterranean

Date: 15 November 2024

Time: 18:00 – 19:00 AZT / 15:00- 16:00 CET

Venue: Mediterranean Pavilion, COP 29 Conference centre, Baku, Azerbaijan

Event format: Hybrid (In-person and virtual participation)