As we approach Finextra’s upcoming green conference, Sustainable Finance Live, slated for October 8 at Events@No6 in London, Richard Peers, the founder of ResponsibleRisk, engaged in an insightful dialogue with Robin Millington, CEO of Planet Tracker.
Planet Tracker is dedicated to tackling the pressing environmental challenges our planet faces today. In their conversation, Millington emphasized the urgency of taking decisive action to influence financial decisions within the sustainability sector.
The organization plays a pivotal role in managing and organizing environmental data for businesses, enabling them to align with their sustainability objectives. Millington addressed a common barrier that companies cite for inaction— the perceived lack of sufficient environmental data. Contrary to this belief, she asserted that a wealth of data is accessible, albeit not presented in a straightforward manner. Many companies are hesitant to move forward, waiting for an ideal scenario instead of engaging with the available data in a meaningful way.
Planet Tracker’s mission includes helping businesses understand how climate change affects their reliance on natural resources. They assist organizations in identifying critical environmental variables relevant to their industry, determining necessary metrics for evaluation, and streamlining these metrics for actionable insights.
Notably, Planet Tracker has made strides in creating biodiversity bonds. They recently issued a reforestation bond aimed at restoring natural resources in South America, which has garnered the attention of the Uruguayan government.
While the emphasis on reducing carbon emissions and striving for Net Zero is vital, Millington underscored that other pressing climate-related concerns often go unaddressed. Issues such as the degradation of wetlands, the ongoing water crisis, and the potential adverse effects of climate change on food systems are becoming increasingly urgent.
Using fish as an example, Millington pointed out that the fishing ecosystem is under threat due to rising coastal temperatures, which have reached historical highs. Fish serve as a primary protein source for three billion people worldwide, and declines in fish populations could have severe consequences for livelihoods, economies, and food security.
Additionally, Millington highlighted a growing risk in the sustainability sector: litigation. As businesses face increasing accountability for their environmental claims, the risk of legal action is on the rise. Therefore, implementing technology-driven traceability for tracking natural resource data and monitoring sustainability initiatives is essential.
The theme for Sustainable Finance Live 2024 will focus on biodiversity and natural capital, emphasizing the transaction pathways of natural resources and the role of climate finance within the supply chain.
Millington expressed the need for greater action regarding biodiversity, though she suggested that the term ‘biodiversity’ may not capture the full scope of the issue. “I prefer the term ‘nature’,” she noted, “since it encompasses all elements of the ecosystem, beyond just plant and animal species.”
For further details about Sustainable Finance Live 2024, including the agenda and speaker lineup, you can visit the conference’s website.