COP25 side-event I Aligning with the Paris Agreement: what does it mean for the International Development Finance Club?

Aligning with the Paris Agreement: what does it mean for the International Development Finance Club?

International Development Finance Club Pavilion

Saturday 7 December, 2-3:30 pm

The Paris Agreement has reframed climate action from a focus on the near-term incremental increase of adaptation and mitigation actions to emphasize the importance of the long-term transformation of economies and societies. Since COP21, an increasing number of public and private financial institutions have taken the commitment to “align” with the Paris Agreement. While there is still no concrete and common understanding of what alignment with the Paris Agreement is, initial frameworks released by financial institutions present guiding principles for their activities.

As such, Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) and the Institute for Climate Economics (I4CE) were mandated by the International Development Finance Club (IDFC) and the European Climate Foundation (ECF) to develop a framework that captures the implications of the Paris Agreement – both through the long-term goals and the process laid out to achieve them. As part of this project, I4CE has identified the three dimensions that financial institutions should take into account when considering the alignment of their activities. In turn, CPI has used the resulting framework to identify the changes the Paris Agreement implies for the role of Development Finance Institutions (DFI) – specifically, members of the IDFC – and how they may implement these changes through a targeted set of activities.

This side-event, organized by IDFC in partnership with I4CE, CPI and ECF aims to present and discuss key outcomes of the research project linking it with emerging approaches and practices of IDFC members to implement the recommendations made and align with the Paris Agreement.

Provisional Agenda:

• Introduction & Moderation: Richard Baron (European Climate Foundation)
• Keynote: Why Alignment Matters for the IDFC? IDFC Representation (TBC)
• Presentation of the Results of the Studies
  • Ian Cochran (I4CE) – Alignment with the Paris Agreement: Why, What and How for Financial Institutions?
  • Bella Tonkonogy (CPI) – Implementing Alignment: Recommendations for the International Development Finance Club

• Thoughts and Reflections from an IDFC Member: KFW – 10 minutes
• Panel Discussion: From theory to practice: practical steps that IDFC members and other DFIs can take to implement the recommendations

Representatives from IDFC members will discuss how they are moving from commitment to practice on Paris Alignment.

More about the Study:

Part 1 led by I4CE establishes a theoretical and conceptual basis for alignment, analyzing and describing the emerging interpretations of the definitions, principles, and approaches across the financial community, and building on the experience of the Climate Action in Financial Institutions Initiative.

Part 2 led by CPI identifies the changes the Paris Agreement implies for the role of Development Finance Institutions (DFI) – specifically, members of the IDFC – and how they may implement these changes, through a targeted set of activities.

Contacts:

• Charlotte Cristofari (AFD/IFC) – cristofaricf@afd.fr
• Alice Pauthier (I4CE) – pauthier@I4CE.org
• Bella Tonkonogy (CPI) – Tonkonogy@cpiclimatefinance.org