7-16 June | Bonn, Germany

UNEP FI, in partnership with UNEP, held a series of events in June in parallel to the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn with the intention of bridging the public-private divide in current efforts to address climate change. While the need to mobilise the private sector – including financial institutions and investors – for the design of a successful global climate change regime is generally agreed, private sector participation into international climate talks has been minimal so far. At the UNFCCC negotiations in June, UNEP FI brought together industry representatives and international policy makers and successfully incorporated technical expertise and skills of the private sector into the negotiations, through a series of activities and meetings designed to discuss and elaborate effective solutions, particularly in the areas listed below in which input from the industry is of highest importance. Loss and damage The Cancun Agreements reconfirmed the urgency of climate change adaptation, and recognised the potential value the insurance industry’s expertise can bring in reducing vulnerability of and building resilience to climate change risks, especially in developing countries. In light of the insurance industry’s expertise and skills in risk assessment, UNEP FI sought to channel insurance sector’s input to the international climate negotiations, and to explore ways to more effectively mobilise insurers under the international climate change adaptation regime going forward.

• UNFCCC Induction Event, 7 June, 6 pm – 7:30 pm
  Policymakers were briefed by key stakeholders. The insurance industry, meanwhile, delivered a united message from the following international insurance industry initiatives: ClimateWise, Munich Climate Insurance Initiative, The Geneva Association, UNEP FI.
• Adaptation Knowledge Day Session on Loss and Damage, 11 June, 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm, Gustav-Stresemann-Institut
  UNEP and key partners, including the World Bank and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), organised four sessions on climate change adaptation.
  A specific a session on the insurance industry and the UNFCCC loss and damage work programme, set in motion through Subsidiary Body for Implementation under the UNFCCC Cancun Adaptation Framework, took place. Prior to the session, insurance experts from the private sector and international climate negotiators and government representatives held specific and structured discussions on the possible components of the Loss and Damage work programme at an Expert Workshop. Discussions centered round how public interventions at the national and international levels can harness the potentials and benefits of insurance sector involvement in the climate risk management challenge.
  The results of the workshop provided a concrete platform for the panel discussions during the session, and for further expansion to be submitted to the UNFCCC process with specific recommendations for the international framework on loss and damage, for consideration for COP17 in Durban.

Private finance and capital mobilisation The shift to a low-carbon path requires investment at scale and systemic change away from business as usual. While transformation appears possible only if underpinned by the private sector, legitimate doubts remain over the effectiveness and reliability of private finance flows to developing countries. Against this background, UNEP FI brought together senior professionals from the private investment and banking communities with finance negotiators from a number of governments.

• Workshop, 16 June, 1:15 pm to 2:45 pm Room TRAM
  Issues addressed include whether mobilising private capital for low-carbon growth in developing countries should be a priority for the international climate finance mechanism, and how private capital could effectively be mobilised while addressing the priorities, needs and concerns of developing countries.
  The public debate was followed by a closed-door expert workshop attended by key negotiators and high-level indutry representatives to further the discussion on the optimal mode and process for involvement of the private sector investment in the international climate finance regime.

Contact

Sunyoung Suh
sunyoung.suh [at] unep.org