Belém, Brazil – The recent COP30 Brazil conference has sent a clear message: the world needs to accelerate climate finance to meet global climate goals. Speaking at the Australia Pavilion, industry leaders emphasized the need for much more finance to flow, much faster, to where it’s most needed.
According to Frederick Teo, CEO of GenZero, trillions of dollars in private capital are waiting to be invested in credible climate opportunities, but investors are hesitant due to policy uncertainty and lack of clear taxonomies. “Finance is available – but not yet flowing at scale,” Teo said.
This sentiment was echoed by the other panelists, who highlighted the need for policy stability, clear taxonomies, robust methods, and predictable demand signals to unlock this capital.
The panel, which included Sasha Courville, CEO of the Carbon Market Institute (CMI), Heechung Sung, Executive Director of Clean Energy Finance Corporation, and Peter Castellas, CEO of Climate Zeitgeist, emphasized the need for public capital to be catalytic in de-risking investments and directing cash flows into real projects on the ground. This includes investments in land-based and hard-to-abate sectors, such as soil health, reforestation, and community-led enterprises.
The discussion also highlighted the importance of nature-based solutions and decarbonisation technologies working together to deliver near-term mitigation and long-term transformation.
“Nature, technology and markets need to work together,” Courville said. “With strong methodologies, clear baselines and social and environmental safeguards, markets can channel capital into projects that would not otherwise proceed.”
High-integrity carbon markets were identified as a key financing tool, but not an end in themselves. The panel emphasized the need for strong methodologies, clear baselines, and social and environmental safeguards to ensure that carbon markets deliver real climate benefits.
The panel also stressed the importance of risk management and transparency in attracting institutional participation. Better tools to manage volatility, integrity risk, and long-term price signals are needed to unlock greater investment. “Risk management and transparency are becoming central to investor confidence,” Castellas said.
The conversation at the Australia Pavilion highlighted the urgent need for climate finance to be scaled up and accelerated. As the world looks to implement the Paris Agreement, the message is clear: it’s time to turn ambition into investable climate and nature outcomes.
The panelists agreed that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to addressing the climate crisis, but rather a need for a multifaceted approach that involves governments, businesses, and civil society working together to mobilize the finance needed to meet global climate goals.
Source: www.climatewatchonline.com
