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THE LAB PARTNER UPDATE: Key Takeaways from the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance’s 10th Anniversary Summit

January 17, 2025

The Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance (the Lab) marked its 10th Anniversary Summit during New York Climate Week, bringing together over 100 climate finance practitioners to reflect on the progress made in mobilizing climate finance over the past decade.

The summit provided a valuable opportunity to discuss key trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the future of climate finance, offering valuable insights that will inform the Lab’s ongoing work and contributions to the broader climate finance community.

Summit participants included Lab members, observers, and guests from various sectors, including government agencies, development finance institutions, philanthropic organizations, and private sector institutions focused on sustainable investment in emerging markets.

The 5 Key Takeaways were:

1. Keep it simple by using proven financial structures that have achieved scale and impact

  • The CoolPact Capital India Fund uses a standard blended venture capital structure to invest in India’s cooling sector, a growing but overlooked market.
  • Regenera Ventures Fund adopts an established equity structure to finance SMEs using regenerative practices in rural Mexico.

2. Leverage guarantees to unlock institutional capital for riskier markets and neglected sectors

  • The SPV for Silvopasture Scaling, which uses guarantees to address the risk of low-likelihood, high-impact events like productivity failures.
  • The Amazon Food & Forest Bioeconomy Financing Initiative, which uses a guarantee to protect against potential loan defaults, making it easier to raise funds.

3. Develop project pipelines while working on financial structuring to ensure a viable pathway to capital raising and implementation

  • Structured Finance for Nature, which invests in ecosystem protection by financing a diversified natural assets portfolio in Southeast Asia.
  • Growth Next-Generation Agricultural (GAN), which finances bio-input SMEs in Brazil to promote healthier soils.

4. Engage locally by working with local fund managers and project developers to build capacity in emerging economies

  • Clean Utilities for Affordable Housing, a South African clean utilities fund, partnered with Mzansi Clean Energy Capital and International Housing Solutions to drive energy access for affordable housing.
  • InvestHer Climate Resilience Bond, led by the Grameen Foundation, which will be implemented in Uganda with a strong local presence and team.

5. Broaden partnerships to include institutions that need to help lead the way, such as insurers, commercial banks, pension funds, and corporates

  • Landbanking Nature Fund, which aims to mobilize corporate finance for climate by developing Nature Equity Assets and placing nature on corporate balance sheets.
  • Resilient Municipal Markets Fund (ReMark), which works with local commercial banks and public-private partnerships to finance upgrades to urban food markets in Africa.

To read about these 5 Key Takeaways in depth, read The Lab’s article here.

As the Lab moves forward, these key takeaways will help shape the future of climate finance, ensuring that billions of dollars are directed toward sustainable and impactful solutions in the fight against climate change.

These discussions and strategies underscore the collective effort needed to achieve global climate goals and create a more sustainable, resilient future.

 

www.climatefinancelab.org/
www.climatefinancelab.org/news/lab-summit-five-key-takeaways/

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