23 September 2019: Described as the first financial sector-led initiative aimed at addressing climate resilience challenges, the Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment (CCRI) was launched on the margins of the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit. The Coalition’s goal is to develop and pilot the first framework for pricing physical climate risks in infrastructure investing.

According to CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project), companies are estimating a potential USD 250 billion in lost assets because of climate change, while USD 1 trillion is said to be at risk over the next five years, with the financial services industry accounting for 80% of that exposure.

The Coalition’s objective is to limit the estimated loss of USD 1 trillion that is at risk over the next five years by addressing the “real systemic failure” of markets around the world to factor in physical climate-related risks into investment decisions. Building on the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), CCRI targets an estimated USD 90 trillion that is earmarked globally for infrastructure up to 2030, of which about 70% is expected to go to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) whose societies and economies are typically more exposed to climate risks. The Coalition will specifically work with climate-vulnerable countries to attract investment in climate-resilient infrastructure.

CCRI is chaired by John Haley, CEO of Willis Towers Watson, and brings together over 30 finance and investment organizations with more than USD 8 trillion in assets under management, to develop practical solutions to advance climate change resilience. It receives support from, among others, the World Economic Forum (WEF), the Governments of the UK and Jamaica, and the Global Commission on Adaptation (GCA).

A related initiative launched at the Climate Action Summit, the InsuResilience Global Partnership, seeks to shield vulnerable populations from the economic burden of climate impacts by ensuring that 500 million poor and vulnerable people worldwide are covered against climate shocks by prearranged risk finance by 2025. The initiative is funded by the Governments of Germany and the UK, with the private insurance industry committing up to USD 5 billion of risk capacity until 2025. [Climate Action Summit Press Release] [World Economic Forum Press Release] [Willis Towers Watson Press Release] [SDG Knowledge Hub News Story on InsuResilience Global Partnership] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on GCA Year of Action] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on Climate Action Summit]