What is climate finance?

Introduction

Each year BIEE convenes a series of seminars on aspects of UK Energy and Climate Policy. These take place in February, April, June and November.  Each seminar focuses on a current controversial topic related to energy and climate change. The seminars feature speaker presentations as well as an opportunity for audience members to participate in extended Q&A and contribute to the discussion.

Next year the UK will host the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow, the first time the UK has hosted a COP. The 2020 BIEE Energy Seminar Series will provide a lead-in to this major event by featuring seminars focused on international climate change issues.

Our April webinar asked : What is climate finance, and how does it connect to real investments?

The  speakers were Amal-Lee Amin, Director of Climate Change, CDC Group and Kirsty Hamilton, Associate Fellow, Chatham House and the webinar was chaired by Dr William Blyth, Oxford Energy Associates

Watch the webinar here

Speakers addressed  the following topics:

Dr Amal-Lee Amin:

• What are the key resources available to support countries transition to net zero and resilient development?
• What is the role of policy and public finance and how private finance be scaled up?
• What is needed to ensure global climate finance initiatives deliver transformational investments?
• How could COP26 help?

Kirsty Hamilton:

• What is needed on the policy side, and what is the role of ‘investment grade policy’?
• Looking at UK and Argentina (RenovAr) as examples
• What is the boundary between economics and finance, and how does this relate to wider system issues?
• Why is investment confidence in a sector so important, and how does it get established?

Amal-Lee Amin- CDC Group

Amal-Lee is a passionate advocate for sustainable development and in 2019 was recognized by Apolitico as one of the top 100 influencers on climate policy. Amal-Lee recently joined CDC Group as Director of climate change  overseeing the implementation of the forthcoming climate change strategy.

From August 2015 – February 2020 Amal-Lee was Chief of the Climate Change Division at the Inter-American Development Bank. There she led a 60 person talented team in support of Latin America and Caribbean countries implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Between 2010 -2015 she developed E3G’s international climate finance agenda, including of a China High-level Dialogue on Financing their Low Carbon Pathway and advising Governments; DFIs; the UNFCCC and OECD on climate finance. Spanning 10 years Amal-Lee had various lead roles within the UK Government driving domestic and international policy outcomes on sustainable energy and climate change, including leading engagement of developing countries under the UK’s G8 and EU Presidencies. Other notable lead roles include design and implementation of an international partnership on renewable energy and energy efficiency (REEEP) and the MDB-led Climate Investment Funds; and design of the UK’s Green Investment Bank.

Amal-Lee holds a BSc in Environmental Science, and an MSc and PhD in Science and Technology Policy. Her Doctorate thesis, which focused on drivers for change within the power sector of developing countries, and case studies on renewable electricity in India and South Africa, has been central to her 20 year professional career.

Kirsty Hamilton, Chatham House

Kirsty has three decades of international policy experience and leadership in tackling climate change and accelerating the energy transition. Returning to the UK, as an Associate Fellow at Chatham House in 2004 she set up an initiative to bridge between senior finance practitioners and policy counterparts on ‘investment grade’ policy (OECD and emerging markets) for clean energy, leading to the establishment of the first-of-kind Low Carbon Finance Group (2010-2015) set up by leading financiers with extensive involvement in UK electricity market reform. She has held several invited international roles including WEF, UNEP Finance Initiative and REN21 and is an expert reviewer (and contributing author, SSREN) to the IPCC as well as observer at the UNFCCC since the early 1990s.

Recent Advisory work includes Specialist Advisor to the 2019 Parliamentary Inquiry into Financing Energy Infrastructure and Senior Policy Advisor at an energy storage investor.  She is currently a co-lead for UKERC funded work on Energy Transition Investment.

‘Finance Guide for Policymakers’ BNEF, Chatham House, UNEP-FS: http://about.bnef.com/white-papers/finance-guide-policy-makers/

Resources