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FINANCE AND INVESTMENT 081the six institutions had already delivered US$100 billion for climate action in developing and emerging economies. On the private side of the financial spectrum, major institutional investors have begun to measure and reduce – to decarbonise – the proportion of their portfolios that are dependent on highly polluting underlying assets. As part of the Portfolio Decarbonisation Coalition, to date, 27 investors committed a collective US$600 billion of their assets under management for decarbonisation. In developing countries there is a greater urgency still and the cost of inaction is constantly rising. The 2016 UNEP report ‘The Adaptation Gap’ estimates that by 2030 the additional cost of adapting economies and communities in developing countries to the physical impacts of climate change will have increased by a factor of three above current global estimates, and potentially a factor of five by 2050, reaching between US$280 billion and US$500 billion per year. The increased investment needs driven by climate change are challenging globally, but particularly in developing economies, which may suffer from significant barriers to investment such as inadequate rule of law, undeveloped financial systems and weak institutional quality. Through its three report series, ‘Demystifying Private Climate Finance’, UN Environment Finance Initiative explores the issue around the scarcity of public climate finance and how, through instruments such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), it can ‘crowd-in’ private finance and leverage multiples of private capital for every dollar of public climate finance spent in developing countries for climate change mitigation, adaptation and reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.After a quarter century of negotiations, the Paris Agreement has finally provided a framework through which countries can implement the ambitious policies necessary to tackle climate change. The NDCs in their present form have not yet delivered on that ambition, but they represent a clear indication of future intent, sending a strong policy signal to the market while offering glimpses of future climate regimes. This political intent has already encouraged investors to re-assess their holdings in anticipation of a changing regulatory environment, as policy makers search for the best solutions to support national emission reduction pledges. The financial community played a constructive role in the Paris Agreement – it must now provide leadership in the transition to a sustainable global economy. Hopefully the 22nd UNFCCC COP, the so-called ‘COP of Concrete Actions’, will be able to deliver on the promises of its predecessor. ■References1The Paris Agreement is yet to be ratified. For ratification to occur, at least 55 Parties to the UNFCCC representing at least 55 percent of total global greenhouse gases need to sign on and indicate their consent to be bound. Only after this will the Agreement “enter into force’’ and become legally binding.2New Climate Economy (2016), ‘Better Growth, Better Climate’. Publication3New Climate Economy (2016), ‘Better Growth, Better Climate’. Publication4McKinsey Center for Business and Environment, 2016, ‘Financing change: How to mobilize private-sector financing for sustainable infrastructure’.ABOUT THE AUTHOREric Usher is Head of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). He brings 25 years of experience in the sustainable energy and finance sectors, including an entrepreneurial venture in Morocco, financial sector development across emerging markets and responsible investment uptake globally. Prior to heading the UNEP FI Secretariat in Geneva, Mr Usher was responsible for a programme portfolio advancing new public/private instruments for financing cleaner energy infrastructure and improving energy access. He was seconded to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change for development of the Green Climate Fund, specifically the fund’s Private Sector Facility. Mr Usher is co-editor and co-author of various studies examining the role of public and private finance in climate mitigation and was lead author for finance of the IPCC Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources. Before joining UNEP, Mr Usher was General Manager of a solar rural electrification company based in Marrakech. He holds an MBA from INSEAD, France, and a BSc in Electrical Engineering from Queen’s University, Canada.ABOUT THE UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME FINANCE INITIATIVE (UNEP FI)UNEP FI is a partnership between the UN and the global financial sector. Founded in 1992 by 10 banks responding to the Rio Conference on Sustainable Development and the establishment of the UNFCCC, its membership today includes over 210 members, around half from developing countries. More than 90 per cent of the world’s largest banks are members, along with many of the big insurance and re-insurance companies. In this capacity it serves a number of roles that will be critical to the successful implementation of the Paris Agreement. Pictured: Eric Usher