Last week, Helen Clarkson, our CEO, spoke at the World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) held in New Delhi. She delivered the leadership address alongside a panel of stalwart leaders from global governments & businesses at the session on green growth and instruments for green leadership.
Identifying finance as one of the key barriers faced by state and regional governments, she said, "Facilitating climate finance and diversifying fiscal base for green growth should absolutely be a top priority. Capacity building should be top of the agenda to deliver the transformational change needed." She added that both national and sub-national finance ministries need to increase their capacity with instruments such as green budgeting, and carbon tax and pricing.
Other members of the panel included:
- Mr Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India
- Ms Gina Lund, Governor, Agder County, Norway
- Ms Terhi Lehtonen, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Environment for Finland
- Mr Kartikeya Desai, Founder, Desai & Associates
- Ms Kathleen McGinty, Vice President and Chief Sustainability Government and Regulatory Affairs Officer, Johnson Control
- Mr Jagjeet Singh Sareen, Principal, Dalberg Advisors
- Mr Abhinav Singh, Director, Amazon India
The Hon'ble Union Minister spoke of the multiple pollution mitigation measures being put in place in major ports to enable the reduction of emissions in the Indian shipping sector by 30% by 2030.
Other issues touched upon by the distinguished panelists included balancing inclusivity and green growth, particularly when broader sustainability goals and legitimate local interests are in conflict, and the need to bring social inclusion back into the heart of climate finance. The panel also suggested climate finance measures that could be part of the Green Development Pact.
Held annually, TERI's flagship annual event, the WSDS brings together global leaders and practitioners on a single platform to deliberate on climate issues of universal importance. You can watch Helen's session here.
