Finance Media Monitor | 10.24.23

SPOTLIGHT

The climate crisis costs the world $391 million per day, according to a new study, and almost two-thirds of the costs come from human loss of life. This hefty price tag is attributed to climate change-induced wildfires, heatwaves, droughts, and other extreme events, with damages averaging over $100 billion per year from 2000 to 2019. Researchers note the daily figure underestimates the true costs of climate change due to challenges measuring indirect losses like decreased productivity, mental health impacts, and loss of access to education or jobs. 

As climate change persists and intensifies the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, businesses will also feel the escalating costs. In response, over 130 major companies, including Ikea, Unilever, and Nestlé, with a combined annual revenue of nearly $1 trillion, have jointly issued an open letter ahead of COP28 in Dubai calling on world leaders to establish a clear timeline for phasing out fossil fuels.

NEWS

OPINION

OPPOSITION

SOCIAL 

  • Ben Pile shared an image: Nigel Farage reveals, as we have long suspected, that financial institutions have taken it upon themselves to police the public sphere. Commitment to ESG requires banks — despite being largely state-owned — to refuse services to people who do not agree with the agenda they have signed up to. Those closes a gap in our understanding of politics and the green blob (and others, for that matter) — aka ‘E’ — and completes the picture of money turning itself into government — the ‘G’ — at the expense of democracy. 
  • The World Bank shared a quote: “It’s remarkable that over 10 years, green bonds have gone from basically nothing to a $2 trillion asset class globally.” Watch this #WBmeetings event replay to hear from Poppy Allonby, @TRowePrice’s Head of ESG Enablement: http://wrld.bg/BpbC50PZ1zP 

DATES

  • Today: Deep Dive “Protections for Farmer-Consumers: Farmers as Borrowers and Land Stewards.” Register here. 
  • October 26: Ceres Charting Progress Webinar: Regulator Actions on Climate Financial Risks. Register here. 
  • October 26: Climate Disclosure Developments: The SEC, California, and EU Extraterritoriality. Register here. 
  • October 26: Gensler doing a fireside chat on climate disclosure at Chamber event.
  • October 27: Transatlantic Forum for Environmental and Climate Justice. Register here. 
  • October 31: Ceres A Guide for Businesses: California’s New Climate Disclosure Legislation Webinar. Register here.