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36 | SOLUTIONS FOR THE OCEAN / THE BLUE ECONOMY

BLUE INVESTMENT
Sustainable finance,

a driver of the blue economy

This investment mechanism, gaining momentum in the marine

sector, needs to come to terms with climate risks.

A conference on sustainable finance was held on the premises of the Monaco Scientific Centre (CSM) on Tuesday 22 March 2022,
as a continuation of the Monaco Ocean Week 2021 event. Current manifestations of climate change, such as hurricanes and forest
fires, are attracting attention regarding the magnitude, scope and urgent need to understand the physical hazards and to assess the
impact and opportunities for the financial sector. Conducted by Nathalie Hilmi, an economist specialising in macroeconomics and
international finance, Head of the Environmental Economy Section at CSM and IPCC member, then by Patricia Cressot, President
of the Monaco Women Finance Institute, asset manager at Rosemont International, two panels followed one another, ranging from
science to finance, and involving local financial institutes.

NATURAL CAPITAL AND INTERRELATED ISSUES

SUSTAINABLE BLUE A global and coordinated response is needed in re-
FINANCE gard to the climate situation, not only from the finance
sector but also from civil society. This is the project
put forward by Walid Al-Saqqaf, founder of Rebalance
How can we address the environmental crisis which Earth, who presented the goal of this service platform
is detrimental to natural capital? George Jabbour, for global ecosystems: “We are working in partnership
Professor of financial engineering and investments with companies that have committed to a zero net car-
at George Washington University mentioned that “al- bon footprint and who promote the protection of key
though the ocean is a source of concern (rising water species”, the speaker explained.
levels, extreme weather events…), it is also a great
source of hope, thanks to its potential in terms of the To conclude, a video by Angelique Braithwaite, a ma-
blue economy”. Sustainable blue finance as a solu- rine biologist for over twenty years and a member of
tion, in particular thanks to “sustainable bonds” or Blue Finance, was shown, presenting a case study on
green bonds, is the leitmotiv of Alain Safa, President the protection of coastal areas promoting the develop-
of CEMAFI International, who encouraged reflection ment of hotel projects based on ethical and coastal
on the European example seen from the angle of pu- protection principles.
blic-private interactions. The aim of these interactions
is to create investment dynamics, especially since the
ocean-related economy is expected to grow two-fold
by 2030.
IN ■ 10%: the cost of biodiversity loss
to the global economy every year,
FIGURES (source: UNEP)
■ Over 3 billion people depend on
the ocean every day.