ClimateBiz
THE BUSINESS OF CLIMATE
IFC’s new podcast series—ClimateBiz—brings together clients, partners, and IFC experts to explore climate markets across the globe, taking a deep dive into industries ranging from renewable energy to energy efficiency to climate-smart agribusiness and urban transportation.
SEASON 2
Episode 6 | March 25, 2020
South Africa is a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions – for context, it emits more than the U.K. even though the U.K.’s GDP is nearly eight times larger. ClimateBiz spoke with Shamini Harrington (VP, Climate Change, Sasol South Africa) about how Sasol, a major industrial player in South Africa, plans to decarbonize its petrochemicals business. In 2019, Sasol released its inaugural report on how it will position itself for resilience in a lower-carbon future.
From Risk to Reward—Climate Disclosure
Episode 5 | February 18, 2020
Climate risk disclosure is a big topic these days for the private sector, especially those companies that are publicly traded. Many have decided to voluntarily disclose their risks and how they are mitigating them. Are mandatory disclosures coming down the pike? Mary Schapiro, former Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and current Special Advisor to Michael Bloomberg, joins ClimateBiz to share her thoughts and predictions.
Episode 4 | January 21, 2020
It's a new year and a new decade. ClimateBiz asked several industry experts within IFC for their predictions of how climate business opportunities will develop in 2020. Tune in for predictions across the diverse field of climate business.
From Risk to Reward—Climate Disclosure
Episode 3 | December 20, 2019
IFC just released a new report, “Green Buildings: A Financial and Policy Blueprint for Emerging Markets,” that shows how financiers, governments, developers, and buildings owners can take the lead in shaping and accelerating this multitrillion-dollar business opportunity.
Bringing Sustainability Home—the IKEA Way
Episode 2 | December 6, 2019
Recorded onsite at Climate Week 2019 in New York, Jesper Brodin, CEO and President of the INGKA Group, which includes the IKEA brand, joined Shari and Marcene to discuss IKEA’s plans to decouple material use from growth. This includes ambitious targets for renewable energy, product suppliers, and transport.
Episode 1 | November 15, 2019
In Part I of this episode, the renowned economist Lord Nicholas Stern literally wrote the book on carbon pricing – well, the Stern-Stiglitz High-Level Commission on Carbon Prices. He and IFC Vice President Hans Peter Lankes join ClimateBiz to discuss the basics of carbon prices, what businesses need to know, and what this means for international development. In Part II, Marcene and Shari interviewed two business leaders, Feike Sijbesma and Anand Mahindra, to discuss the report they co-chaired on Carbon Pricing and Competitiveness.
Bonus Episode
Michael Sheren is a senior advisor at the Bank of England, the UK’s central bank. ClimateBiz caught up with him at the 2019 Innovate4Climate conference to discuss his views on climate-related financial risk disclosure.
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SEASON 1
OCTOBER 3, 2019
Cooling a Warming World
Explore the financing mechanisms for efficient, sustainable cooling
Ironically, cooling our buildings, transport, and industry is a major contributor to climate change. Jim Maguire from Sustainable Development Capital joins ClimateBiz to discuss the financing mechanisms for efficient, sustainable cooling.
Views expressed here are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of IFC.
AUGUST 22, 2019
Pulling Carbon out of Thin Air
Learn about capturing carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and turning it into fuel
Carbon Engineering captures carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and turns it into fuel. CEO Steve Oldham joined ClimateBiz to discuss how carbon capture has a big role to play in the ambitious targets laid out by the Paris Agreement.
Views expressed here are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of IFC.
AUGUST 8, 2019
Taking Innovation to a Higher Altitude
Learn about the first solar plane and 1,000+ other climate solutions
They said it was impossible to produce enough energy from the sun to power an airplane. But Bertrand Piccard did it. And he flew that plane around the world. It took a larger wingspan, a lighter aircraft, and a commitment to showing how protecting the environment does not have to reduce quality of life. Bertrand joined ClimateBiz to discuss his Solar Impulse Foundation and how it builds on the success of the solar plane to scale up 1,000 profitable, innovative climate solutions.
Views expressed here are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of IFC.
July 25, 2019
Plastic Bank
Explore the link between climate change and ocean plastic
David Katz, founder and CEO of Plastic Bank, joins ClimateBiz to discuss how his company turns plastic waste into currency to fight ocean plastic and help people ascend from poverty at the same time. Roughly 8 million metric tons of plastic enter the oceans every year. These plastics cost society up to $2.5 trillion a year in damage and lost resources from tourism and aquaculture. This episode explores the link between climate change and ocean plastic and how innovative ways to recycling plastic could help to change human behavior, capture value in waste, and create new markets.
Views expressed here are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of IFC.
JULY 11, 2019
Offshore Wind: The New Wave
Learn how offshore wind has become a major player in electricity generation
Henrik Stiesdal, a wind industry pioneer who installed the first offshore wind farm in 1991, joins ClimateBiz to discuss how offshore wind has become a major player in electricity generation. Cumulative investments in offshore wind are projected to reach $350 billion by 2030, just over a decade from today. This episode explores where the sector stands today, and which technologies and regions are poised to see the most development.
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Henrik Stiesdal
Wind Power Pioneer
@HenrikStiesdal
Sean Whittaker
Senior Renewable Energy Specialist, IFC
IFC
JUNE 13, 2019
The French Connection to the Climate Transition
The transition to a low carbon economy in a socially responsible way needs to happen fast…but it also needs to be done right. Brune Poirson, Secretary of State for the French Ministry for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, joins ClimateBiz to discuss President Macron’s approach to climate leadership both domestically and internationally. Tune in to hear about ambitious approaches for everything from plastics to fashion to the financial sector, and how social responses such as the gilets jaunes (“yellow jackets”) influence the conversation.
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Brune Poirson
Secretary of State to the French Ministry for an Ecological and Inclusive Transition
MAY 14, 2019
Shining Prospects for Distributed Solar
Small scale solar has more than doubled since 2012, and distributed generation is profoundly transforming the energy sector. Shari and Marcene are joined by two solar experts – Guido Agostinelli, a Senior Industry Specialist at IFC, and Mike Silvestrini, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Energea, a renewable energy project investor that is focused on emerging and frontier markets.
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Mike Silvestrini
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Energea
Guido Agostinelli
Senior Industry Specialist, Climate Business, IFC
APRIL 25, 2019
Learn why companies across the agricultural sector are paying more attention to the sustainability of their supply chains
From shade trees to weather index microinsurance for smallholder farmers, agribusinesses are taking action on climate change. Guillaume Le Cunff, Nespresso USA President and CEO of the Nespresso Sustainability Innovation Fund, joins ClimateBiz to discuss Nespresso’s carbon footprint and how to make coffee production as a whole more sustainable as well as more resilient to climate impacts. Companies across the agricultural sector—as well as their investors—are paying more attention to the sustainability of their supply chains.
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Guillaume Le Cunff
President of Nespresso USA and CEO
Nespresso Sustainability Innovation Fund
Alzbeta Klein
Director and Global Head of Climate Business
IFC
MARCH 19, 2019
Climate Justice for All
What do local credit unions, job retraining, energy access, and potential climate litigation have in common? Climate justice. Historically, the developed world has been responsible for the warming of the climate while the developing world has borne the worst of the impacts. Former president of Ireland and current climate justice champion Mary Robinson joins the podcast to discuss the concept of a just transition to a low carbon economy and what it means for the private sector.
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Mary Robinson
President, The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice
FEBRUARY 27, 2019
The World’s Largest Green Bond Fund
At $1.42 billion, the Amundi Planet Emerging Green One (EGO) fund is the world’s largest green bond fund. The fund was established in partnership with IFC. In addition to its size, it is significant for its focus on emerging markets. The fund will deploy over $2 billion over its lifetime. This episode delves into the innovative thinking that led to this award-winning fund and the process of finding the right partner.
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Frédéric Samama
Co-Head, Institutional Clients Coverage
Amundi
Jean-Marie Masse
Chief Investment Officer
Financial Institutions Group, IFC
FEBRUARY 8, 2019
Crystal Ball
What does 2019 hold in store for climate business? This episode pulls in expert opinions from specialists across IFC. Perhaps this will be the year of the green home. Or significant legislative and regulatory changes in Europe for sustainable finance. Or the year that investments in hybrid solar-wind systems skyrocket.
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JANUARY 26, 2019
Bonds…Green Bonds
Green bonds are a hot topic in the sustainable finance world. Denise Odaro (International Capital Markets Association) and Berit Lindholdt-Lauridsen (IFC) join ClimateBiz to discuss what green bonds are and how they can mobilize capital for climate investments.
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Esohe Denise Odaro
Director, International Market Association (ICMA)
Head of Investor Relations, IFC
Berit Lindholdt-Lauridsen
Climate Finance Specialist
IFC Climate Change Business
DECEMBER 4, 2018
Rerouting for Climate: Electric Buses and Cities
See how cities are financing and incorporating electric vehicles into their transit systems
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V. Ponnuraj
Managing Director
Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation
Sascha Kelterborn
Senior VP Sales & Marketing Western Globe
Microvast
NOVEMBER 20, 2018
Can Energy Storage Save Our Planet?
Take a look at market projections for storage technology and how it can enable renewables
Kiran Kumaraswamy
Market Applications Director
Fluence
Peter Mockel
Principal Industry Specialist
IFC
NOVEMBER 2018
If You’re Gonna Build It, Build It Green
Explore the value proposition for green buildings and what is needed to scale up in rapidly urbanizing emerging markets
Mahesh Ramanujam
President and CEO
U.S. Green Building Council
CEO, Green Business Certification Inc.
Prashant Kapoor
Chief Industry Specialist, Green Buildings and Climate-Smart Cities, IFC Climate Business Group
OCTOBER 2018
The Business of Climate Change: Will the private sector solve the climate crisis?
Insights on how leading corporations and investors are influencing energy markets and driving policy changes
Nigel Topping
Chief Executive Officer
We Mean Business
BONUS EPISODES: Dispatches from COP24 in Katowice
Straight from the Conference of the Parties in Katowice, Poland, Marcene and Shari recorded several interviews onsite with leaders in climate negotiations and climate business. The Conference of the Parties (COP) is where government, civil society, investors, and others gather each year to continue negotiations for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and to discuss the latest developments in climate change.
Podcast Hosts
Marcene Mitchell
Senior Manager
Climate Business and Strategy, IFC
Shari Friedman
Senior Strategist
IFC
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Contact Us
For questions about the podcasts, including any booking inquiries and suggestions, e-mail us at climate_biz@ifc.org
