Photo: Unsplash/William Gibson
07 Oct 2022 Audio Green economy

Financing Nature: COP27 Special Podcast

The Financing Nature: COP27 Special is a podcast produced in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Green Finance Institute (GFI) in the lead up to COP27.

The five-episode series builds awareness of the need for private finance in delivering the nature-positive outcomes we urgently need for climate mitigation and adaptation. 

Episodes

The first episode of Financing Nature's COP27 Special Series from the Green Finance Institute and United Nations Environment Programme explores how the finance sector can reduce deforestation and finance reforestation and frame up what we need from global leaders at COP27. Helen Avery speaks with Champions Finance Lead, Sagarika Chatterjee, about the work of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) and global commitments and solutions, and José Pugas, Head of Responsible Investments and Engagement at JGP Asset Management in Brazil shares with Jessica Smith the work of IFACC (Innovative Finance for the Amazon, Cerrado and Chaco) and the needs of the Global South.

The second episode of Financing Nature's special series with UNEP, Andrew Deutz, Director of Global Policy, Institutions and Conservation Finance at The Nature Conservancy shares the need to mobilise government and development bank aid into nature restoration projects and the role of guarantees and insurance, and Yasmine Sagita, Chief of People, Sustainability and Corporate Affairs at rubber company, PT Royal Lestari Utama (RLU) discusses the Tropical Landscape Finance Facility (TLFF), which was funded by the world's first sustainability bond.

Africa, host to COP27, is also host to 30% of the world's biodiversity. It is also a continent on an accelerated economic growth trajectory. In this third episode, guests Kaddu Sebbunya, CEO, African Wildlife Foundation and David Cheboryot, Director of Entrepreneurship Centres – Africa - E4Impact Foundation, share how economic growth, community development and conservation can go hand in hand and how private finance and the private sector can play their role. Finally, the guests discuss their hopes for COP27 from governments.

Over 70% of the planet's surface is covered with water, yet when it comes to protecting and restoring oceans' health, finance is sorely missing. Indeed, only 0.01% of all climate finance is invested in marine and coastal nature-based solutions. In this fourth episode of the Financing Nature COP27 Special Series with UNEP, Karen Sack, executive director at the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, and Yabanex Batista, Deputy Head of the UN's Global Team for the Global Coral Reef Fund, discuss the role of coastal communities and our seas in climate mitigation and adaptation, and what we need to see to mobilise greater investment.

In this final episode of our COP27 Special Series with the United Nations Environment Programme, we are joined from UNEP's Ecosystems Division by Susan Gardner, Head of the Ecosystems Division and Ivo Mulder, Head of the  Climate Finance Unit. Susan and Ivo wrap up the series by sharing what they hope to see happen at COP27 and the actions we collectively need to take to ensure that nature restoration and nature-based solutions receive the investment they urgently require.