Towards an Improved Integration of Sustainability in Finance

There is a broad consensus that private finance has an important role to play in financing the climate transition, given the scale of needs and the constraints on public finances. Beyond investments in climate alone, all financial activities must be reoriented to be compatible with the transition. This shift cannot take place on a voluntary basis at the scale and speed required. The inactivity of financial players, the weight of past financing, and the demands of shareholder profitability limit the effectiveness of voluntary international initiatives to which private financial players commit themselves.

La transition net‑zéro, c’est-à-dire la transformation vers une économie neutre en carbone et résiliente, est un défi majeur et urgent pour réduire les effets du changement climatique. Cette transformation nécessite la transition et l’adaptation de toutes les activités et de tous les agents économiques. Elle relève d’abord de la sphère économique réelle et doit s’appuyer sur une feuille de route opérationnelle des actions à mener. Celle-ci doit être définie par une politique économique ambitieuse (budgétaire, fiscale, monétaire, réglementation des produits et des secteurs, etc.).

COP28 in Dubai kicks off amidst a worrying climate backdrop. For the first time, the threshold of a 2°C temperature rise compared to the pre-industrial era was exceeded in one day. In addition, a report published by the UN this week warns that current policies are placing the planet on a warming trajectory of 2.9°C, and that the chances of maintaining the increase at +1.5°C are now of only 14%. The results of the first Global Stocktake, a worldwide assessment of the actions taken by countries since the Paris Agreement, will be published at the COP and should confirm the urgent need to change the trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions.