Sustainable Finance – Profit with Purpose?

With commitments in the UK, EU and Globally to transition to a low-carbon, more resource-efficient and sustainable economy; banks and other financial instructions are increasingly looking at Sustainable Finance solutions to support this activity. Sustainable finance is the provision of finance to investments taking into account environmental, social and governance considerations.

Timings:

08.30am Registration and Breakfast

09:00am Introductions and Panel discussion with Q&A

10:15am Close & Network

Join us for a business breakfast to hear more from our panel of industry experts:

Caroline Barr, CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP

Caroline Barr is a senior associate in the Edinburgh office of CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP, specialising in project finance with a particular focus on the renewables sector. She has advised a range of financial institutions on structuring and negotiating secured loan facilities and intercreditor arrangements. Caroline has a particular interest in green, social and development finance and leads the firm’s sustainable finance initiative, under the banner of which she advises clients on best practice in the field of financing sustainable economic activity and hosts the firm’s working group on the topic.

Andy McCulloch, Director, Lloyds Banking Group

Andy McCulloch has worked for Lloyds Banking Group for 23 years and is a Director in the Commercial Banking Division. He helped to launch the Divisions’ £1 billion Real Estate green lending initiative in 2016 and £2 billion Clean Growth Financing Initiative in 2018, continues to support the on-going strategy and governance for both, and more recently he has been supporting Commercial Banking with TCFD (Task Force on Climate related Financial Disclosures) implementation.

Professor Kenneth Amaeshi, University of Edinburgh Business School

Kenneth is professor of business and sustainable development at the University of Edinburgh. His research interest currently focuses on sector-level policies for sustainability and sustainability strategy in organisations. He has an expert level knowledge of developing and emerging economies. He has an extensive network in Africa and was recently a Scholar in Residence at the National Pension Commission, Nigeria. Prior to Edinburgh, he followed a career in management consultancy, and held positions at the Cranfield School of Management and the University of Warwick (Warwick Business School and Warwick Manufacturing Group, respectively). Besides teaching and researching, Kenneth works closely with businesses and governments in Africa, Europe, and Asia. He leads executive capacity building engagements and consultancy projects in the broad areas of sustainable finance, sustainability strategy, leadership, ethics, and governance.

Catherine Flockhart, Baillie Gifford & Co

Catherine is a Client Service Director specialising in our Positive Change impact strategy. Catherine has been involved with Positive Change since launch, prior to which she worked as a specialist on Baillie Gifford’s established global and international equity strategies. Before joining Baillie Gifford in 2012, Catherine began her career at Goldman Sachs having studied English Literature at the University of Edinburgh.

Fran van Dijk, Ethical Finance Hub

Fran is a founding partner of One Stone Advisors Ltd, a global strategy and communications team which helps companies become more effective sustainability leaders. She is a pioneer in low carbon and sustainable business, with 25 years experience in the field. She advises on managing opportunity and risk to build long-term value, working with corporates such as Aggreko, Carlsberg Group, Edrington, Electrolux, Ericsson, Scania, Tetra Pak, TUI Travel and SSE. Fran holds Masters degrees from the University of Cambridge and the European Association for Environmental Management Education. She is co-author of Creating a Culture of Integrity: Business Ethics for the 21st Century. Fran serves on the Board of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Advisory Committee of Montanaro Asset Management’s Better World Fund, and chairs the Macaulay Development Trust.

Host Partner – CMS

CMS is the world’s 6th largest law firm, with a presence in 41 countries. We advise many of the UK’s largest financial institutions, including banks, insurers and investment businesses, so the question of sustainable finance, and what it means for our clients and their business, is one that we take very seriously. Our lawyers actively support a number of organisations with issues of sustainability, including ESG accreditation, regulation, and deal structuring, so we are well-versed in the specificities of this sector of the market, and the legal fundamentals that accompany it.

Supporting Partner – Ethical Finance Hub

The Ethical Finance Hub (EFH) is a Scottish-Government backed, practitioner-led not-for-profit focused on raising awareness, building capacity, delivering research and supporting financial institutions with the UN SDGs to support the growth of the ethical finance sector in Scotland. The EFH aims to create a fairer, more inclusive and socially responsible financial system as well as improved environment, social and governance performances of businesses.