As an official event host for Climate Week NYC 2020, Ceres held and participated in a number of virtual sessions to outline the ways in which investors, companies, policymakers, and regulators can scale action to mitigate the worst impacts of the climate crisis. Check out the recordings of the sessions below.
Cities, Investors and Infrastructure: Climate Aware Funding Strategies
Municipalities are on the front line of climate risk. Infrastructure needs to be built, repaired and replaced, all of which will require investment capital. Important considerations for investors and borrowers include determining how these long term projects are accounting for climate change and reducing risk, factoring climate resiliency, and accounting for the transition to clean energy. In this virtual session co-hosted by Breckinridge Capital Advisors, speakers explore the implications of climate aware funding strategies on the city's bond rating and cost of capital.
Charting a Course to 30x30 for Zero-Emission Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicles
In light of the momentous 15-state Memorandum of Understanding on Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero-Emission Vehicles, more than 30% of the nation's commercial vehicle market is now pushing collaboratively toward a 30% zero-emission share of sales by 2030. Join CALSTART and Ceres for a workshop highlighting various perspectives on the most instrumental drivers of market transformation. Speakers discuss what leading states and cities can do quickly and equitably to drive the commercial vehicle transformation to deliver cleaner air for communities. They highlight global best practices and explore how leading strategies like purchase incentives and utility preparedness can be adapted and scaled domestically, on both regional and national scales.
Shifting Attitudes on Climate Change in the Republican Party: A Conversation with Former Congressman, Bob Inglis
As we near the U.S. election, the climate crisis will be a major focus for Americans. Climate change has been one of the most politically divisive issues of our time, but there is a shift happening across the country, as more and more Republicans recognize the need for swift action. Watch the one-on-one conversation with Bob Inglis, founder of republicEn and former congressman from South Carolina.
Investor Expectations in 2021: Setting a Course for Effective Climate Lobbying
Climate risks pose particular uncertainty to investment portfolios from a regulatory, economic and reputation perspective. That's why it is important for investors to understand the role they can play in improving corporate lobbying practices on climate change. The session focuses on a number of ways investors can influence the process including how they can ensure companies advocate for science-based climate policies both directly and indirectly through business and trade organizations. Understanding available tools like the Ceres Blueprint for Responsible Policy Engagement on Climate Change that address climate risk will be key so investors can engage in climate lobbying more effectively.
Aligning Corporate Lobbying with Climate Science
It is increasingly apparent that impacts from climate change pose not just financial and material risks to companies and industries, but in fact pose systemic risk to financial markets writ large. Given the nature of this risk, all corporate action—including corporate lobbying—should be proportional to the risk faced and aligned with the latest science on climate change. More and more investors understand that corporate lobbying that is not aligned with climate science is an investment risk. Ceres Blueprint for Responsible Policy Engagement on Climate Change provides detailed recommendations for how companies can align their risk, governance, and lobbying on climate change with the latest climate science and drive “risk aware” climate lobbying.
Climate Leadership NOW
Ceres CEO and President Mindy Lubber joins the We Mean Business coalition and the hosts of Outrage + Optimism for a discussion on what business needs to do to lead on climate in the 2020s. This decade will be crucial to put us on track to decarbonize the economy. The power of corporate leaders to help accelerate the pace of change is profound. This discussion marks the release of a new paper from We Mean Business that lays out what corporate climate leadership needs to look like in the 2020s.
This event is part of the Hub Live by the Climate Group.
Sustainable Investment Forum North America 2020: Mobilizing Sustainable Investment Towards a 1.5-degree World
Hear how to push for a net-zero emissions economy in the midst of global health crisis and economic downturn during the Financing a Sustainable Future session in Part 1 of Sustainable Investment Forum’s four-part digital series. Speakers discuss climate-aligned investing and forward scenario risk analysis, and more. Ceres is an Institutional Partner with the Sustainable Investment Forum North America 2020, the largest finance forum during Climate Week NYC 2020.
Moderator
Dawn M. Martin, Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer, Ceres
Speakers
Jeff Gitterman, co-founding Partner, Gitterman Wealth Management
Terry Heymann, CFO, World Gold Council
Lauren Smart, Director & Global Head of ESG, Trucost, part of S&P Global
