This project continues previous work exploring the interrelation between finance and environment, focusing on two areas emphasized by the CEC Council at its ninth regular session. These are (1) How environmental information affects financial markets, and (2) What are the investment opportunities in the environmental "sector."
The role of the private financial services sector in supporting environmental goals is critical. The Johannesburg declaration on sustainable development emphasizes the need for private sector corporations to enforce corporate accountability in a transparent and stable regulatory environment. Implementation language includes: increased investment in cleaner production and eco-efficiency in all countries through incentives and support schemes and policies directed at establishing appropriate regulatory, financial, and legal frameworks. In partnership with the finance sector, UNEP, and others, this project will continue its work in identifying needs for information and financial analysis in supporting investments in green markets, in particular, those related to debt, equity, and venture capital finance. Second, the project will focus on ways environmental information—and, in particular, information related to environmental risk—is relevant to improving transparency and stability in financial markets. The project will examine how to advance work on existing requirements regarding disclosure of environmental information pertaining to financial reporting. The sectoral analysis will concentrate on the energy sector—including "upstream" activities of relevance to that sector.
The environment represents an important, dynamic, and growing business area for two reasons: (1) Environmental management is closely linked to business and financial risk management, and (2) The environmental goods and services sector represents an important investment opportunity. To address the latter, the project will identify and broker partnerships in support of environment-related financing, such as the North American Sustainable Agriculture Fund.
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