The UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) Global Roundtable, entitled “Awareness to Action: Sustainable Finance for Today’s Global Markets,” brought together more than 450 participants from 34 countries from 24-25 October 2007 in Melbourne, Australia, to discuss new ideas and challenges in relation to sustainable finance.

During one of the Roundtable sessions, participants heard examples of how UNEP FI signatories are turning awareness of the environment and climate change into action, highlighting the disparity between the long-term issue of climate change and the short-term focus that a lot of asset managers take. Among other things, participants agreed that, given the extensive range of sustainability issues that financial institutions face and are expected to deal with, the UNEP FI’s greatest ongoing challenge is to mainstream the sustainable development culture across the financial services spectrum.
Link to further information
UNEP FI Roundtable website