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The 7^th AIB Sustainability Conference will feature global and local leaders including a number of Irish businesses who will share their knowledge and experience in how they’ve integrated the green agenda into their businesses, offering practical advice and tips for those who attend virtually.  

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Join us for a collaborative session related to climate finance roadmaps and how capital markets can be used to mitigate social and climate risk.

Panel 1- Ireland's International Climate Finance Roadmap – an opportunity for international cooperation with multilateral partners?   

• Combining the goals on climate financing from both, Ireland and the World Bank, what are areas of potential collaboration? Where does the panel see the greatest challenges?

• What kind of collaboration is useful and which ones are not useful (e.g. market standards, joint projects, exchange of data, technical assistance, etc) including relevant case studies

Panel 2 - How can capital markets be used to mitigate social and climate risk? A discussion of impact bonds, catastrophe bonds and the "pay for success" structure

• Opportunity to present and compare structures such as impact bonds, CAT bonds versus 'regular bonds'

• "Pay for success" structures of impact bonds – are they are a feasible instrument for 'mainstream capital markets' or even for larger volume transactions?

• What are the implications of too many outstanding CAT and impact bonds for regulators, investors and issuers?

• Are impact and CAT bonds a possible instrument for sovereign issuers? Would they have been more efficient in financing the economic impacts from recent climate related catastrophes?

Held in partnership with the World Bank and EIB

Speakers:

• Henry Coyle - Senior Financial Officer, World Bank Treasury
• Ioanna-Victoria Kyritsi - Head of Strategy and Policy, European Investment Bank (EIB) Global
• Francesca Pellegrino - Vice President, ESG Solutions Group at TD Securities
• Michael Bennett - Head Derivatives & Structured Finance / Capital Markets / Treasury - World Bank Treasury
• Alexander Malitsky - Director DCM SSA Team, TD Securities
• Mark Merrigan - Head of Bond Products and Documentation, NTMA
• Andy Palmer - Chief Executive Officer, Swiss Re Capital Markets Limited
• Asbjørn Purup Andersen - Senior Portfolio Manager, Velliv Pension

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Kickstart Climate Finance Week Ireland (#CFWI23) with Biodiversity Finance Day, featuring an illustrious lineup of world-renowned experts in biodiversity conservation and finance. Biodiversity finance is the cornerstone of our efforts to protect and restore the natural world. It encompasses a range of financial mechanisms, investments, and strategies designed to safeguard the rich tapestry of life on Earth, from the smallest pollinators to the mightiest forests. Earth's biodiversity is under unprecedented threat, with species extinction rates soaring and ecosystems under stress. This day is dedicated to exploring the critical intersection of finance and biodiversity. Discover how sustainable investments and innovative financial strategies, guided by these leading global voices, can help us combat this crisis.

Join us as we welcome esteemed speakers including Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain, Mark Halle, Alex McLean and Thomas Viegas. Engage in insightful discussions led by these experts, and together, let's address the urgent need for biodiversity conservation and sustainable finance, for the sake of our planet's health and the well-being of future generations.

Speakers

• Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain - Associate Professor, UCD School of Mathematics & Statistics

• Thomas Viegas - Partnerships Lead, Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures 

• Thomas Ball - Director, KPMG Sustainable Futures
• Alex McLean - Partner and Head of ESG, Arthur Cox LLP

Join us for a session on "Navigating practical application of the CSRD"  through practical examples of how other businesses have mobilised on the topic, including key activities such as double materiality and regulatory gap assessments. 

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Speakers:

• KPMG Participants: Sarah Moran, Eva Sheehy, Dr James Fitton, Thomas Ball

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In our drive to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals we are faced with a range of complex issues that require the development of innovative solutions. Join us as we gain insights from three successful female entrepreneurs who have focused their businesses on addressing the challenges under E,S & G. Hear about their journey to entrepreneurship, lessons learnt along the way and what they hope to achieve through their organisations.

Held in partnership with 100 Women In Finance

Speakers:

• Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill - Minister of State at the Department of Finance
• Aisling McCaffrey - Director, Grant Thornton Ireland
• Mamobo Ogoro - Founder and CEO, GORM
• Sandra Healy - CEO & Founder, Inclusio
• Ann Shiels - Founder, FinLexSus
• Cathy Bryce - MD Capital Markets, AIB

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A dynamic and insightful Transition Finance Symposium as we delve into the critical role of transition finance in shaping our journey toward a sustainable, Net-Zero future. The event kicks off with the highly anticipated launch of our updated roadmap, presented by Stephen Nolan. Our expert panels, featuring thought leaders like Mardie McBrien from ISSB, Marcus Neto, Patrick Burke, Paul Healy and Colin Hunt from AIB will delve into key topics, from sustainable finance strategies to ESG compliance. Discover how transition finance is the linchpin of our Net-Zero aspirations and why it's crucial in making or breaking our sustainable future. Following the roadmap presentation, engage in a live discussion with David Carlin. 

Speakers

• Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Minister of State at the Department of Finance
• Sharon Donnery - Deputy Governor, Financial Regulation, Central Bank of Ireland
• Stephen Nolan - Managing Director / Head of Secretariat, UNDP Financial Centres for Sustainability
• Mardi McBrien - Chief of Strategic Affairs and Capacity Building, IFRS Foundation
• Marcus Neto - Director, UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub
• Mark Jordan - Chief Strategy Officer, Skillnet Ireland
• David Carlin - TCFD Programme Lead, UNEP Finance Initiative
• Patrick Burke - Managing Director, Irish Life Investment Management
• Jan-Hein van den Akker - Head of Equity & ESG Integration, Europe & AMEA, Mercer
• Colin Hunt - CEO, AIB

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There is an enormous gap between public sustainable finance commitments and the amount required to move towards a lower carbon, more sustainable global economy. A crucial part of helping to bridge this gap is allowing investors to understand and assess the impact of investments made on the real economy. Aligning this reporting with ever-increasing regulatory requirements, such as SFDR, will ultimately enhance the flow of privatecapital into these projects, helping to drive real world impacts.

Held in partnership with Mercer

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Speakers:

• Angelika Delen - Global Head of Impact Investing, Mercer
• Catriona Wood - Sustainable Investment Specialist, Mercer
• Andreas Hoepner - Professor of Operational Risk, Banking & Finance, UCD
• Mark Halle - Senior Fellow, International Institute for Sustainable Development

IN PERSON INVITE ONLY / REGISTER FOR STREAMING INFORMATION. STREAMING COMMENCES AT 2PM.

Held in partnership with FPAI

Speakers

• Opening: Michael Concannon
• Moderator: Eimer Loakman PWC

Panellists:

• Trisha Gibbons PWC
• Sebastian Aburto Citi
• Alan Doherty – Novaralabs
• Sarah Thompson - Arthur Cox

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Panel One - ESG investing in the Private/Public Asset Space

This moderated discussion will look at how innovations in the private asset space are assisting in meeting our net zero ambitions, with a panel of industry experts drawn from across the asset management sector.

Panel Two – ESG ETFs

A moderated panel discussion which looks at the key issues facing ESG ETFs and the developments in innovation for sustainable investing.

Held in partnership with Maples Group

Speakers

• Angelika Delen - Global Head of Impact Investing, Mercer
• Deirdre McIlvenna - Partner, Maples and Calder (Ireland) LLP
• Ian Conlon - Partner, Maples and Calder (Ireland) LLP
• Peter Stapleton - Managing Partner, Maples and Calder (Ireland) LLP
• Alan Synnott - Global Head of Research & Product Strategy, Real Assets, BlackRock
• Adrian Mulryan - CEO, Invesco Investment Management
• Aidan O'Mahony - Head of ESG Advisory, Goodbody
• Catharine Dwyer - Senior Policy Advisor, Markets Policy Division, Central Bank of Ireland
• Lucy Thomas – Head of Sustainable Investing, UBS
• Graham Fox - Head of Distribution, Amundi

THIS IS A VIRTUAL EVENT

When considering responsible investing we look at it through two lenses. The first is integrating investment preferences into portfolio, for example excluding ESG or climate laggards. The second involves our voting and engagement efforts. Both aspects play an important role in achieving investment goals, join us for this conversation on the role of stewardship in achieving our climate goals.

Held in partnership with ILIM

Speakers:

• Niall O’Leary - Chief Sustainability Officer, ILIM
• Euan Stirling - Head of Stewardship, ILIM
• Deirdre Hayes - Head of Irish Commercial Property, ILIM
• Jan-Hein van den Akker - Head of Equity & ESG Integration, Europe and AMEA, Mercer

Ahead of COP28 hear from world leading marine scientist and climate-risk expert Dr Deborah Brosnan about the challenges facing global marine and land biodiversity. Join IOB Members for this exclusive event to find out about some of the world's most innovative solutions to environmental and climate risks and how they are impacting their ecosystems, economies and human populations. Following Biodiversity Cop15 part II in Nairobi in October and ahead of COP 28 receive a state of play on the sources of finance associated with biodiversity including blue bonds, sustainable finance and more.

Sponsored by IOB

Speakers:

• Eimear McBride, Director of Digital and Innovation, IOB
• Dr Deborah Brosnan - President and Founder, Deborah Brosnan & Associates

Join us for a targeted session on the CSRD's Environmental standards, offering expert insights and practical compliance strategies through Subject Matter Expert perspectives and a hands-on case study. Discover how these benchmarks are shaping corporate sustainability reporting and their implications for your organisation.

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Speakers:

• KPMG Participants: Sarah Moran, Dr Barry O’Dwyer, Dr James Fitton, Thomas Ball

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The Irish forestry sector and Coillte have an important role to play in the achievement of Ireland’s climate action targets. Coillte manages 440,000 hectares of primarily forested lands, about 7% of the total area of Ireland. Coillte recently launched its new forestry strategic vision which aims to sustainably balance and deliver the multiple benefits from Ireland’s state forests across four strategic pillars: climate, wood, nature, and people.

This vision will see Coillte, enabling the creation of 100,000 hectares of new forests by 2050 supporting the national afforestation target and creating a carbon sink of 18 million tonnes of CO2.

Coillte also has an ambition to enhance and restore biodiversity by increasing the area of the Coillte estate managed primarily for nature from 20% to 30% by 2025 and to 50% in the long-term.

Coillte is also committed to promoting the use and benefits of wood to help increase the level of timber homes from 20% to 80% by 2050. Using Irish wood as a locally grown renewable and sustainable construction material in place of traditional materials has carbon and climate benefits.

Join us and learn more about Coillte’s strategic vision aims to optimise its contribution to Ireland’s climate targets.

Speakers:

• Imelda Hurley, Coillte CEO
• Dr. Janice Fuller, Forest Ecologist, Coillte
• Karen Woods, Operations Manager, The Nature Trust

CLICK HERE TO WATCH LIVESTREAM

Panel 1 - ISIF – Financing the energy transition - A moderated panel discussion with contributions from across the Energy/ Climate Tech sectors

Panel 2 - NewERA – Sustainable Mobility - Join us for a moderated discussion looking at real economy examples of progress in achieving elements of the Climate Action Plan, focused on transport.

Held in partnership with the National Treasury Management Agency

Speakers:

• Caoimhe Donnelly - CSO, CIE Group
• David Watson - CIO Temporis Capital, CEO Ohme
• John Paul Corkery - Senior Manager, Sustainable Finance, NewERA
• Kevin Hourigan - Customer Solutions Manager, ESB
• Matthias Dill - CEO and Managing Partner, Energy Impact Partners
• Paul Saunders - Senior Investment Director, ISIF
• Rory Kelleher - Head of Sustainability, An Post
• Tanya Harrington - Chairperson Renewable Energy Ireland (REI), Just Climate Ireland
• Emma Jane Joyce - Sustainability and Climate Action Lead for the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA)

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE LIVESTREAM

Ireland and France, two of the main financial hubs in the EU, share the will to further improve the Sustainable Finance framework to capitalise on the European leadership. Hosted by Amundi, the first ever Ireland-France joint seminar on sustainable finance will gather top representatives from governments, business, academics and institutions from both countries to discuss the current challenges and identify ways to overcome there in a coordinated manner. This event is by invitation only, registration upon request.

Held in partnership with Amundi and the French Embassy

Speakers:

• Minister Michael McGrath - Minister For Finance
• Cécile Goube - Managing Director, Institut de la Finance Durable
• David Harte - CEO, Amundi Ireland
• Alan Guy - Head of Cross Border Products & Innovation, Amundi

Irish Funds initiated a review of SFDR Level 2 disclosures and have a virtual panel discussion on initial findings. This panel will also break out Irish Funds upcoming response to the SFDR consultation.

Held in partnership with Irish Funds, kindly hosted by KPMG

Speakers:

• Cathal McGlinchey - Director Financial Reporting Solutions Lead, KPMG
• Aine McCarthy - Knowledge Lawyer, Dillon Eustace and Vice Chair, IF ESG PLR Working Group
• Anita Donoghue – Vice President, BlackRock / Vice Chair Irish Funds Data and Reporting Working Group
• Lauren Anderson – Associate - Policy and Regulatory, Irish Funds

Chartered Accountants Ireland is partnering with Climate Finance Week Ireland to deliver a webinar on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and its implications for SMEs in value chains. With effect from financial year beginning on or after 1 January 2024, companies in Ireland will begin reporting under the CSRD (and as a result, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards ‘ESRS’). Drawing on our speaker’s expert knowledge, the webinar will first describe the CSRD and the ESRS. This will be followed by a panel discussion, on how the financial services sector is transforming its own environment, social and governance profile, and the impact this will have on customers along the value chain. Building on the concept “you’re in scope because they’re in scope”, the speakers will discuss ways for SMEs to prepare for the potential impact of the Corporate
Sustainability Reporting Directive.

Held in partnership with Chartered Accountants Ireland

Speakers:

• Dee Moran - Professional Accountancy Lead, Chartered Accountants Ireland
• David Connolly - Senior Manager, EY Climate Change and Sustainability Services
• Donna Wilson - Head of ESG Transformation, AIB
• Susan Rossney – Sustainability Officer, Chartered Accountants Ireland

This session will open with an introduction to Sustainable Finance and ESG and we will explore the current status of where we are at in the Sustainable Finance landscape. We will discuss the key learnings of the Professional Diploma in Sustainable Finance for Compliance Professionals from both a learner’s perspective and also from a programme co-ordinator, lecturer, content developer and subject matter expert.

Held in partnership with The Compliance Institute

Speakers:

• Dermot Kennedy - Head of Operations, Compliance Institute
• Ann Shiels - Founder, FinLexSus
• Kathy Jacobs - Director Consultant,  Regionvale Risk and Compliance
• Eimear McBride - Director of Digital and Innovation, IOB

Please click here to register.

Today the word 'nature' seems on everyone’s lips. But what is nature, how is it linked to biodiversity and why should investors and companies care about it? This session will orient those who are new to these topics, as well as provide some novel linkages for those already leading in this field. It will cover the recognition of impacts and dependencies; commitments; frameworks, data uses, and tools; early adopter examples; and unresolved issues. Join this participatory session to sharpen action within your organization.

Held in partnership with CDP Ireland

Speakers:

• Dorian Fougères - Senior Nature Lead for Europe, CDP
• Brian O'Kennedy - CEO, Clearstream Solutions
• Nessa Joyce - Consultant, William Fry
• Katie Heston - Biodiversity Lead, Cleastream Solutions
• Lucy Gaffney - Platform Development Lead, Business For Biodiversity Ireland

This session held will focus on helping institutions understand the need for net zero alignment, what climate targets must include, what progress we have seen in target setting and what are the remaining challenges to net zero alignment. The session will also feature an open Q&A and a focus on practical guidance in advancing target-setting efforts.

Held in partnership with The Insurance Institute

Speakers:

• David Carlin - TCFD Programme Lead, UNEP Finance Initiative
• Paula Hodson - Director of Education and Development Services, Insurance Institute of Ireland

Financial markets are increasingly recognizing the imperative to address climate risk, but what about social risks and inequality? Worldwide, resistance to climate solutions is growing, whether due to concerns of job loss, lack of access to affordable energy, or lack of ability for less developed regions to economically grow. This session will explore emerging financial risks and opportunities relating to social issues and inequality. The investment case to reduce social risks and inequalities will be shared, including why addressing these risks are critical to advancing climate solutions. Emerging tools and resources to address social issues and inequality will also be discussed.

Held in partnership with Predistribution Initiative

Speaker:

• Delilah Rothenberg - Executive Director, Predistribution Initiative

Join us for a specialised event focusing on the 'S' in CSRD. Engage with industry leaders and Subject Matter Experts to understand the Directive's social criteria and acquire practical strategies through a guided case study. Leave with a refined approach to social elements in your organisation's sustainability reporting.

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Speakers:

• KPMG Participants: Kristina Kouros (EMA Human Rights Lead, KPMG Finland), Liudmila Chambers (KPMG UK), Sarah Moran