EMEA’S participation in the COP continues. On the second day EMEA held 3 panels with distinguished experts discussing timely and important issues on sustainability and climate change.
The first event of the day was “Investing in and financing the acceleration of sustainable development in a net zero scenario” split into session 1: The role of high-income countries, and session 2: The role of low- and middle-income countries.
You can view the sessions here:
Session 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWhHelEZYNg
Session 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkoGSw35a98
This EMEA led side event presented the latest investment and financing-based initiatives and regulatory actions to accelerate the sustainable transition and net zero. It delved into the public private partnership to accelerate the green transition in Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa and propose innovative financing solutions towards an accelerated transition.
Prof. Rym Ayadi opened the session to Mr. José Manuel Campas, the keynote speaker, Chairperson at the European Banking Authority to discuss the role of policy and regulation. The session then moved onto the panellists:
Mr. Frank Elderson, Vice Chair of the Supervisory Board at the European Central Bank; Ms. Eila Kreivi, Chief Sustainable Finance Officer, European Investment Bank; Ms. Sonja Gibbs, Managing Director and Head of Sustainable Finance, Institute of International Finance; and Ms. Monique Goyens, Director General, BEUC.
Prof. Rym Ayadi opened the second session by introducing the keynote speakers, H.E Philip Davis, Prime Minister of the Bahamas, and H.E Hala Elsaid, Minister of Planning and Environment from the Republic of Egypt. Following that, the following panellists had the floor to discuss financial initiatives in their sectors and regions: Dr Emmanuel Pinto Moreira, Director, Country Economics Department, African Development Bank; Mr. Robert Patalano, Head of Division, Financial Markets; Ms. Nagla Bahr, Managing Director, Credit Guarantee Company, Egypt; Mr. Kwame Sarpong Barnieh, Partner, KPMG; and Mr. Enrique de Villamore, Director, MedWaves.
Prof. Rym Ayadi also participated as a panellist in the Green finance for sustainability side event organized by the Meri Foundation in the Science for Climate Action Pavilion.
This event discussed the importance of moving towards blue-green portfolios, which promote sustainable investments and technologies to mitigate climate change, in a sustainable and measurable way.
Prof. Rym Ayadi as a panelist highlighted the need to identify and avoid greenwashing as much as possible to ensure it does not contaminate the positive value that can be created from innovation. She explained that if we shift incentives towards more sustainability, meaning sharing economies, and more long-term values, this regenerative value could be identified for all species and ecosystems.
The final event of the day was the EMEA led side event Financing sustainable transition: Towards a transformative scenario to tackle climate change in the Spanish Pavilion.
Prof. Rym Ayadi opened the event by launching the EMEA initiative Sustainable Transformative Action for Transformative Thinking and Action, for Europe the Mediterranean and Africa. STA is a forward looking trans-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder initiative that seeks to accelerate sustainable economic models and actions that are transformative and aligned with a net zero scenario.
The event continued giving the floor to the following panelists: Mr. Urko Diez Webster, Head of Carbon Markets Unit at Spanish Climate Change Office MITECO; Mr. Antoni Ballbriga Torreguitart, Global Head of Responsible Business, BBVA; Mr. Etienne Butruille, Climate Change Director, Santander; Dr Simon Zadek, Executive Director, NatureFinance; and Mr. Enrique de Villamore, Director, Medwaves.
