Investable Resilience: Turning Climate Metrics into Capital
This event is hosted by Howard University. How can we craft adaptation metrics to make the business case and facilitate investment (especially private investment) for climate resilience in urban communities? There is a huge funding gap in the U.S. (and globally) between the adaptation investment we need and the capital actually being disbursed. To bridge this, we must move beyond risk assessment and start building a compelling business case that speaks the language of private investors.
This speaker panel and audience Q&A session brings together a diverse range of adaptation and resilience practitioners, researchers, and finance experts.
Welcome: Dr. Kimberly Jones, Dean of Howard University's College of Engineering and Architecture
The panelists:
Ayana Albertini-Fleurant, Founder and Executive Director, Sustain the Culture
Brandi Colander, CEO, DC Green Bank.
Thomas Kerr, Principal Climate Policy Officer, IFC, World Bank
Laura Mondragon, Director for Climate Resilience and Adaptation, Montgomery County Green Bank
Monica Sanders, Founder, CEO, The Undivide Project; Adjunct Professor of Law, Georgetown University
Moderator: Benjamin DeAngelo, Founder, Operation Future, LLC; Adjunct Professor, Howard University
Potential Questions to Explore:
Metrics: In your experience, what is the single most important metric or "signal" that transforms a climate risk into an investable opportunity for either public or private funds? Conversely, where does current adaptation reporting fall short in providing the data investors need to price risk and commit capital?
Success Stories of Capital Mobilization: Can you share a specific "success story", such as an Environmental Impact Bond or a Resilience Fund, where the financial structure itself was the key to unlocking investment?
Equity and Local Wealth Creation: As we build this new asset class of "Investable Resilience," how do we ensure that the financial returns also generate a "resilience dividend" for the underserved communities? How can the deployment of resilience capital serve as a tool for local wealth creation, improvements in quality of life, and equitable development in and around DC?
DC Climate Week is not responsible for this event. It is organized by the organizing group, and being listed on the DCCW calendar is not an endorsement of content or partners.