COP & the future for sustainable finance

Talks at the United Nations Conference of Parties will help shape the future of investment frameworks around carbon markets and sustainable finance, according to John Connor, CEO of The Carbon Market Institute – and the sector is ready for the discussion.

Speaking with Katharine Tapley, ANZ’s Head of Sustainable Finance amid COP28 in Dubai, Connor said the global stocktake of how countries are progressing on their 2030 climate ambitions will play a crucial role in shaping economy-wide 2035 targets.

“Everyone's got to do more,” Connor told Tapley on video. “And so how that stocktake drives decisions at this COP, and how much that drives further ambition afterwards, is going to be the top-level issue.”

Connor said discussions around the Paris Agreement, which govern global cooperation around carbon markets, would be critical at COP.

Those markets are “one of the key tools for driving investment into climate solutions and also making countries work together in the most economically efficient way”, he said.

You can watch the conversation on video below.

{vimeo}

Despite progress made at previous COPs, there are still elements around frameworks that still need work, Connor said.

“[Things like,] can governments change the rules on how they've authorised carbon projects to make sure we actually have good markets and investment frameworks, for companies who are engaging around this around the world?” he said.

Ultimately the success of the Paris Agreement will come down to how it can ensure collaboration between economies, Connor said.

“One of the tests is how much finance and investment is actually happening, not just through public,  taxpayer grant schemes, but how it's getting mobilised through investment vehicles,” he said.

The UN Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP) will be held between November 30 and December 12 in the United Arab Emirates.

This article reflects the edited version of the conversation as it appears on video.