All Things Sustainable

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we're covering key takeaways from COP16, the UN's major biodiversity conference that just wrapped up in Cali, Colombia.   The conference co n vened countrie s fr om around the world , and w e hear about key outcomes of government negotiations in an interview with Astr id Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity .    We...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we explore the role a rtificial i ntelligence can play in advancing sustainability outcomes — and how the energy demands from generative AI programs could change over time.   We talk with Hussein Shel, Chief Technologist and Head of Upstream Digital Transformation, Energy and Utility at Amazon Web Services (AWS) , a cloud-computing and technology service...

Today marks the end of COP16, the UN's biodiversity-focused C onference of the P arties in Cali, Colombia . T he UN's climate change conference, COP29, is slated to begin Nov. 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan .  One common thread in these events is the challenge of address ing the big financing gaps for a range of sustainability issues — including  climate, nature, and social equity .   In this episode of t...

T he UN's big climate change conference, COP29 , starts  Nov . 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan . In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we're exploring technolog y solutions for the low-carbon transition, including in developing countries .   We talk with Vaishali Sinha, Co-founder and Chairperson of Sustainability at ReNew , a decarbonization solutions compan y deploying renewables and other low-carb...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we're talking climate finance ahead of COP29, the UN climate change conference taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan in November 2024.   Scaling climate and clean energy financing will be a major focus at COP29, which many are calling the "finance COP." B oth the public and private sector will play a role in addressing the massive climate financing gap for de...

  T hroughout Climate Week NYC, we heard about the importance of collaborating across silos to find solutions to climate change , the energy transition and nature loss . In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast we hear concrete examples of what that looks like in practice.   We speak with two climate scientists about how their organizations are work ing to communicate across disciplines and buil...

At Climate Week NYC 2024, many conversations focused on improv ing public understanding of climate change — also known as climate literacy . In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast we explore how increasing climate literacy can help pre pare the future workforce for the green job opportunities that will come with the low-carbon transition.   We sit down on the sidelines of The Nest Climate Camp...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast we sit down with California State Senator Henry Stern at Climate Week NYC.   Sen. Stern introduced one of two climate laws that California enacted in 2023, Senate Bill 261, which requires certain companies to prepare reports on climate change risks. The other, Senate Bill 253, requires certain companies to estimate and publicly disclose their greenhouse g...

  In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we sit down  at Climate Week NYC with Sue Jenny Ehr, the interim CEO of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). SBTi is a nonprofit that develops standards,  tools and guidance to allow companies to set greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets in line with what is needed to reach net-zero by 2050 at latest . Sue took on the interim CEO role  in...

One theme  emerging from Clim a te Week NYC 2024 is the link between nature loss and climate change.   In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, National Audubon Society CEO Dr. Elizabeth Gray explains how nature can provide solutions to climate change.   Audubon is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of birds and their habitat s throughout the Americas . The North American bi...

In the latest episode of the ESG Insider podcast we sit down with CDP CEO Sherry Madera on the sidelines of Climate Week NYC.   CDP is a not-for-profit charity that runs a global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities , states and regions to manage their environmental impacts. Sherry talks to us about how the organization has evolved since she took th e reins ne arly a year ago. She ex...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast we sit down with Climate Group CEO  Helen Clarkson on the sidelines of the Climate Week NYC Opening Ceremony Sept. 22.   Climate Group is the nonprofit that organizes Climate Week NYC in partnership with the UN General Assembly and the City of New York. In the interview, Helen explains the global to-do list Climate Group released at the start of Climate W...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast we hear from the world's largest asset owner, Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) .     NB I M is Norway's $1.7 trillion -dollar sovereign wealth fund and owns almost 1.5% of all shares in the world's listed companies. To understand how NBIM is exerting that influence, we speak to Chief Governance and Compliance Officer Carine Smith Ihenacho .   Cari...

In recent episodes of the ESG Insider podcast, we explored the role of carbon markets in reaching climate targets, and how the voluntary market is evolving. In this episode , we're explorin g the intersection of climate change and biodiversity through the lens of the voluntary carbon market .   Carbon credits come from different types of projects, and we're exploring the role that biodiversity can...

With Climate Week NYC just around the corner , this episode of the ESG Insider podcast explores what to expect from a week tha t will convene thousands of stakeholders for hundreds of events across New York City Sept . 2 2-29 .     The ESG Insider podcast will be on the ground covering many of these events, starting with the Opening Ceremony hosted by Climate Group. This is the nonprofit that orga...

The US is heading into Labor Day weekend, and at the ESG Insider podcast we're turning our focus to the topic of jobs. Specifically — how is the talent landscape changing for ESG and sustainability professionals?    To learn more we speak to Ellen Weinreb, founder of Weinreb Group, a boutique recruiting firm focused on ESG and sustainability candidates. Ellen points to an increasing focus on compl...

On th e ESG Insider podcast, we often hear that achieving the low-carbon transition on a global scale will require a mix of solutions. Carbon markets are one key tool available to companies and countries. In this episode , we bring you the second of a two-part miniseries on carbon markets. In part one last week, we explored how voluntary and compliance carbon markets work . We also h eard that vol...

On this podcast, we often hear how achieving the low-carbon transition on a global scale will require a mix of solutions. Carbon markets are one key tool available to companies and countries .   In t his episode of the ESG Insider podcast , we bring you part one of a two-part miniseries on carbon markets . We dig into voluntary and compliance markets , including how they're struct ured and used, h...

Even as society becomes increasing ly reliant on computers and digital technologies, billions of people around the world lack ac cess to the internet and related services. And this matters because this lack of access can have a ne gative impact on the economy and exacerbate existing inequalities, particularly in developing countries.   In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we ' re explor ing...

The automotive sector is going through big transformation thanks to a variety of factors — everything from new technologi es to the evolving way consumers think about their cars. In this latest installment in the ' Women in Leadership' series of the ESG Insider podcast, we're talking with Fedra Ribeiro about leading through times of change.   Fedra  is Executive Vice President at Bosch , a global...

It ' s opening day for the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France , and a t the ESG Insider podcast we ' r e con tinuing our Sustainability in Sports miniseries.    This week we ' re talking with Julia Palle, Vice President of Sustainability at Formula E, the motorsport championship launched a decade ago for racing electric vehicles . She explains how Formula E is taking a holistic approach to  sus...

S ports lover s have countless ways to enjoy sporting events this summer , from last week ' s Wimbledon tennis and EURO 2024 football final s to next week ' s launch of the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France.    At the ESG Insider podcast we ' re continuing our miniseries on Sustainability in Sports . This week we're talking with Rocío Torres, Head of Sustainability and Responsible Business at...

Summer is in full swing, the finals of the UEFA Euro 2024 European Football Championships take place this weekend and the Summer Olympic Games kick off later this month. So at the ESG Insider podcast, we're turning our attention to sustainability in sports .     P rofessional sports are big business, a nd as we hear from today's guest, the sporting world is facing pressure to become more sustainab...

In today's episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we explore key themes from the GreenFin 24 conference — including data, disclosures, and advancing the low-carbon transition in emerging markets. We also hear how these topics are prompting an evolution in the role of sustainability professionals and driving a need for greater internal collaboration.    "There's a sense that we can make progress and t...

In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we look at how to unlock financial flows for nature an d transform heavy polluting industries into environmentally friendly on es .   We hear how the nature finance landscape is evolving from Dr. Carter Ingram, Managing Director at nature and climate change investment and advisory firm Pollination Group. She says that despite growing interest and investm...