Ireland: CAO Participates in Sustainable Finance Conference

May 30, 2019 – CAO Vice President, Osvaldo L. Gratacós, participated in a high level conference in Dublin, Ireland on May 16, 2019, hosted by the Government of Ireland and Sustainable Nation Ireland. The conference, “Catalyzing Global Savings to Advance our Sustainability Goals”, convened bond issuers, investors, and other key market participants for action on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At the start of the conference the World Bank launched a EUR1.5 billion Sustainable Development Bond to finance its sustainable development activities.

During the conference, Osvaldo spoke on a panel discussing The Gap Between the Global Savings Pool and Worldwide Sustainability Needs.  Panelists highlighted the need to expand the understanding of green bonds to incentive energy transition and for financial capital to supports project that have a clear environmental and social benefit. Osvaldo emphasized the importance of considering project benefits and impacts upon communities that are expected to host large energy projects. He noted that it is important for financial institutions that issue green bonds to implement robust environmental and social management systems to assess and supervise the risk at the project level.