Transcript by Kensho.

Lindsey Hall: I'm Lindsey Hall, Head of Thought Leadership at S&P Global Sustainable1.

Esther Whieldon: And I'm Esther Whieldon, a Senior Writer on the Sustainable1 Thought Leadership team.

Lindsey Hall: Welcome to ESG Insider, a podcast hosted by S&P Global, where we explore environmental, social and governance issues that are shaping investor activity and company strategy. 

Today, we're one month out from Climate Week NYC, which takes place in New York City at September 17 to 24. Now in its 15th year, this is a big week for the sustainability world, bringing together thousands of stakeholders for hundreds of events across the city. The event takes place every year and is organized by the nonprofit Climate Group in partnership with the UN General Assembly and the city of New York.

Esther Whieldon: So in today's episode of the podcast, we'll be diving into Climate Week:  what it is, why it matters and what to expect. We'll hear from Climate Group's Executive Director for North America, Angela Barranco. She tells us what themes will be covered and also how Climate Week has evolved over the years and what needs to happen for the week to be successful.

Lindsey Hall: We'll also talk to Britton Jones, Founder and CEO of the Nest Climate Campus. That's a 3-day event taking place during Climate Week at New York City's Javits Center, and it brings together companies, NGOs, government, academia and the community at large.

Now first up, here's my interview with Angela from Climate Group, telling us what to expect next month. You'll hear her mention the IRA, that's the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, a comprehensive energy and climate law passed in 2022. And she also mentions the IIJA. That's the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, more commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal, which U.S. President Joe Biden signed into law in 2021. Okay, here's Angela.

Angela Barranco: Climate Week really is the opportunity to bring the whole world of climate leaders together in one place, not just to sort of sit together in community, which I think is important in many ways and to sort of create that network of folks, but to exchange ideas, to create, I like to call them deals, but opportunities amongst peers to be able to create momentum in action, and then to deliver and to be accountable to those changes. And so what Climate Week is, is a week in September. It's always around the UN General Assembly meeting for climate. And we literally have thousands of people from across the world come together to focus on the pathway forward for climate action.

We as Climate Group, as part of Climate Week, we host a series of events at the highest level with prime ministers and presidents and leadership folks to 500 events across the city, including many grassroots opportunities and nonprofit-driven conversations. We work with folks in the arts community, in the corporate sector, really just a cross-section across all of the folks who are really thinking deeply every day about how to attack this crisis that we find ourselves in and be able to work together, too, in the climate crisis.

Lindsey Hall: The scale you just described is massive. What is the best way for folks to get familiar with the agenda or if they wanted to plan out their own road map for the week?

Angela Barranco: I think it's one of these things that's a little bit choose your own adventure, right? And I think in a really wonderful way. If you come in and you're a transportation export, there will be events throughout the week, whether they be very localized events about, say, a particular event that's happening with the New York City group to massive global UN meeting on transportation and decarbonization of transportation. And you can really find also all of the leading experts and advocates and be able to sit down with those folks in informal spaces and formal spaces to have a conversation about how to create momentum for climate action.

But I will say that's repeated across every single sector. So whether you're interested in heavy industry, you're interested in nature, food systems, health, the green economy, there are conversations like that happening all across many, many different venues and spaces. 

And so what I would say is come in with a little bit of an agenda, who would you like to see? What kind of conversations are you interested in having? And there will always be a happy home for you as much time as you can give to it for the whole week or even just one day, you can really maximize the opportunity.

And the second thing is the people that are there, right? Like you could also spend your time with zero events and still get incredible opportunities to do one-on-ones in small group discussions. And there's a lot of side meetings that happen throughout. So it's not just all official meetings. It's a lot of just collaboration and cooperation that's happening across the board.

Lindsey Hall: And then in terms of the topics or the key themes that are going to be covered, what are you expecting to come out of Climate Week this year?

Angela Barranco: One is on the new industrial revolution, right? This idea of -- this transition from green economy to the economy. Climate Week is an international gathering. We have folks from across the world who join us. There's many, many conversations happening in many different spaces.

But specifically, what I would say is in the United States, there is such a conversation right now around exactly that, from the transition from green economy as a side economy to the main economy into this transition of the green economy is the economy. And things like IRA, IIJA, some of the other regulatory pieces, a lot of the work that the Biden administration has done over the last almost 2 years now has created so much momentum in terms of jobs, factory work, economic transition and opportunity, just transition and equitable distribution.

And so we're literally reshaping our economy to prepare for the climate crisis and be a part of that solution. And so that is a really fascinating but also difficult challenge. Our North America team is hosting a conversation with a lot of key players in the climate space talking about exactly that and what does it mean to actually implement the Inflation Reduction Act. What does it mean to actually make sure that you have an equitable transition? And how can we all work together to achieve that?

So that's the context I'll give it just in terms of our U.S. strategy, but that is also an example, but also one of many examples happening across the world. And so as other economies make those transitions, we are going to be seeing sort of a global embracing of the green economy as the economy.

Lindsey Hall: Okay. That's interesting. It sparks for me. It sounds almost like what I'm hearing from corporations where they're trying to figure out how do they go from having this siloed side sustainability or climate-focused part of the business to really weaving that throughout their entire way they do business and making it really baked into the fabric of the company. I think I hear a little bit of a parallel there.

Angela Barranco: Absolutely. And we see it a lot and Climate Group doesn't just -- with Climate Group, we actually have a series of corporate campaigns, including Renewable Energy 100, Electric Vehicle 100, which are internal action campaigns of companies, right? So the idea is it's not just that you buy a bunch of electric vehicles. And yay, you've checked the box on corporate sustainability but you have to convert your entire fleet and you have a deadline, right?

And in order to do that, we create these campaigns that create pure learning, give opportunities to address technical challenges, all those, but it's exactly that. It's that transition from -- it's a showcase on the side. It's a pilot project. It's a great report we're writing about a plan that we're doing into everyday operations for what we are doing. And that's true not just in the company, but also in an economy or in a government, right? And so thinking about that systemic change throughout is really important.

Lindsey Hall: I also asked Angela what other themes will be covered during Climate Week.

Angela Barranco: The second one is driving the energy and transport transition. This is sort of an interesting merger of systems that I think a lot of people are thinking about. Like you can't just decarbonize transportation without thinking about the energy system, right, because you need to charge those vehicles. And you also can't think of decarbonizing the energy system without the impact of electrification of the transportation system.

So these 2 very large pieces of where we're kind of merging and thinking about how those are related, where there are challenges, stuff like creating enough capacity in the right places for, say, heavy-duty trucks. Thinking about workplace charging or the way that you can expand the network of transportation and building electrification. And so it's just a really interesting time in both of those relatively mature sectors in terms of decarbonization that are kind of getting to this sort of more sophisticated place, which is really interesting.

Lindsey Hall: And then what's next on your list of themes that you're focused on?

Angela Barranco: The next is nature, food systems and health. And this is actually a bit more like our emerging categories is what I would say. Not to say that there hasn't been tremendous work in all of these places for a long time, but they are rising to the top in so many ways, whether it's nature-based solutions or the impact of supply chain and food across the world, the impact of land use, the impacts on people, so public health and the nexus with all of the kind of health care sector that we are seeing right now and sort of this idea of all of these topics really being very interrelated. And so we'll be having a lot of conversations around all those pieces.

Lindsey Hall: Okay. Great. At COP27 last year, we also heard increased discussion of this topic of food security as well. So interesting to hear that this is something that is coming up more as an emerging topic for Climate Week.

Angela Barranco: Absolutely. I mean folks start to think about always governments having a major focus on, say, like food security or food systems, but we have tremendous public resource that goes into agriculture. We have buying power that happens at the global level from all of the governments involved.

The same goes on the private sector side, right? So companies buy things through supply chains. They buy -- they have cold food management systems that are high intensity, and you have to deliver things that are obviously fresh, but they go long distances. And so there's all these components to food that are really emerging as opportunities, and a lot of folks are very excited that it could move rather quickly. So the technology seems to be available and really it's about implementation and getting everybody together.

Lindsey Hall: The last theme Angela highlighted is financing the green economy.

Angela Barranco: Global finance is a very active conversation as folks know, whether it be just transition, whether it's literally like Inflation Reduction Act, putting money into an economy to transition it into a green economy. There's all these mechanisms and opportunities happening across the world but also here within North America that are really impactful and innovative and how can we do more.

And so we may have reached a point where we've built some really great plans. We probably have some great emerging technologies and a lot of the critical path is through money, right, and investment. And so how do we accelerate that investment and accelerate the funds and resources so that we can transition quicker?

Lindsey Hall: I wanted to know from Angela, how has Climate Week evolved since it launched?

Angela Barranco: Climate Week really started at a different point of time in the climate history. I think 15 years ago, there was really a conversation around whether or not climate change was happening. It was sufficient to stand up and say, I believe in climate change. It was sufficient to stand up and say, I have voluntary action in this. What am I going to do? And cool, you've come to the table, that's great.

But what we've seen over the course of time is that's wonderful, but it's no longer sufficient. We need to achieve meaningful means fast because the crisis is upon us and we have a whole world that's dependent on our work to get it done. 

And so part of this is seeing that focus come to Climate Week has been really exciting, seeing folks come to the table ready to roll up their sleeves, make a deal, get something done and not just sort of talk about it, not just do a pretty press release, but also utilize this as a way to create momentum. So I think that's been really exciting.

I think the other piece is the breadth of conversation that's happening. Like I mentioned, over 500 events across the city. This didn't start at 500 events, right? And so what is amazing is to see all the people coming to the table, all the ways that we're including folks at every part of the climate world in one space in time, and that's just been really amazing.

So you're going to get your local New York City climate justice group. And the next day, you're going to have a global bank having an event and then prime minister speaking. And then you just -- you have literally the world represented and that is definitely an evolution from where that started.

Lindsey Hall: And necessary, too, because climate change impacts the world and all stakeholders.

Angela Barranco: Yes, I mean, that's the thing. It's also one set of stakeholders are just never going to get it done. And that is so true. Like the scale of the problem is so huge, but the scale of the solution needs to be that large as well. So we need those prime ministers, and we need those fancy corporate types and CEOs, but we also need every community and local leader and everyone involved, right? Everyone is going to be a part of the solution in some way or another.

Lindsey Hall: Angela, I know we're just about out of time, but wanted to know from your perspective, what would need to happen to make this year's Climate Week a success? What are you hoping to see?

Angela Barranco: Gosh. For me, I think it really comes down to these partnerships and the sort of driving of great ideas, right? So it's not good enough for it just to live a Climate Week. I want to see everybody come to Climate Week, learn, exchange, do all this amazing work while they're there.

And then like I said, have a plan, leave, know the next day what you're going to put into effect. And then I want to see you again at COP, and I want to hear an update on what the groundworks that you've done. And then I wanted to come back next year at Climate Week and tell me how you doubled down on that because that's the way we're really going to get there. Climate Week is one week of the year, but this is a 52-week, 365-a-day effort, right? Like we need to get out there and utilize these moments to create momentum to bring resources to do the hard work. But the hard work goes on every single day.

Lindsey Hall: So you just heard Angela talking about the hundreds of events that make up Climate Week. One such event is the Nest Climate Campus. And this is where our company, S&P Global Sustainable1 will be hosting an event on September 20, which I'll be MC-ing.

Esther Whieldon: And we'll both be there on the ground conducting interviews for a special Climate Week series of this podcast.

Lindsey Hall: Yes. And to learn more about this 3-day event and what to expect from its several different tracks, I spoke to Britton Jones.

Britton Jones: I am the Founder and CEO of NXT Events Media Group, which is a purpose-driven events company that produces The Nest Climate Campus. And we are the event partner of Climate Week NYC. We're running at the Javits Center in Javits North, which is the new $1.5 billion expansion of the Javits Center, which just is totally committed to sustainability. It's a wonderful place to hold a conference focused on climate solutions. We'll be running September 19th through the 21st.

Lindsey Hall: What can you tell our listeners about how that agenda for The Nest Climate Campus is shaping up? What kinds of speakers or organizations will be represented? And what kinds of topics are they going to be covering?

Britton Jones: Great question, Lindsey. It's a 3-day event, and there are 4 main pillars to the climate campus. One is the main stage, which is a -- really our conference program, where companies from -- some of the largest companies in the world, large billion-dollar multinational companies are sharing their climate solutions right on down to midsized companies and actually, I think, the smallest company in terms of annual revenues on the main stage this year as revenues just in excess of $5 million.

So it's a place no matter what type of organization — we have a lot of nonprofits actually involved on the campus this year — so no matter what size or type of organization one is involved in, there's -- there are going to be relatable, actionable, accessible climate solutions being demonstrated on the main stage. Another big part of the campus, there are 28 sessions and 4 keynotes taking place, featuring over 100 speakers on the main stage during the 3 days. 

Another big focus of the campus are co-hosted meetings, and these are like-minded organizations that are coming together to become part of the community, to be part of the unity and take advantage of the central location that we're creating at the Javits Center.

Lindsey Hall: We heard from Angela about what theme she'll be watching during Climate Week, and I wanted to know the same thing from Britton. What topics is he expecting to emerge from the week?

Britton Jones: So themes are the food system, from how we grow our food to eliminating food waste. We're focused on fashion, the circular economy, climate-conscious lifestyles and consumption. We're going to have a session on direct air carbon capture, clean energy, climate risk and reporting, climate tech and the built environment, impact investing and philanthropy, sustainable travel and tourism and events, and climate equity and justice is going to have a pretty substantive program on that on our day 3.

I think there's going to be even more focus on tech this year and enabling technology or technology playing a role. I think some people are waiting for this breakthrough technology that's just going to solve the climate crisis. And I'll be delighted if that technology gets developed and appears, but I'm not holding my breath for it. But technology does have an important role to play.

Lindsey Hall: Like Angela, Britton talked to me about the importance of getting all stakeholders involved. To this end, he noted that attendance at the Nest Climate Campus is complementary.

Britton Jones: And we do that very intentionally. This is really an all-hands-on-deck situation. And so many of the -- there are so many silos in the climate movement, so many events that charge a heavy registration fee. And what happens when people do that is you wind up with the same 300 to 500 people and companies being represented in the audience, the companies that can afford that type of entry fee. And we think to really move the needle on climate change, we need to involve many more. We need to also get a much wider swath of companies and academia, government and nonprofits together to form collaboration.

So we need to move beyond heads of state and the C-Suite of Fortune 500 companies. And that's what we do on the campus with complementary admission. Last year was our first real year of in-person attendance and we attracted over 4,200 climate leaders representing over 1,500 companies and organizations on the campus.

So we really are very committed to forming a community where collaboration has no boundaries. A really big part of what we're doing on the campus is providing extensive opportunities for networking as well, which is a key part of people expanding their networks, forming new relationships and taking positive action on climate change.

Lindsey Hall: Some of the words you're using are kind of making my brain light up because I'm hearing these words used a lot in the sustainability space in conjunction with COP28, which is coming up later in the fall, but also just more broadly when it comes to addressing sustainability issues in climate in particular.

So things like collaboration and the importance of breaking down silos. These are ideas that I hear a lot as things that need to happen and also as big challenges for the sustainability world. Love to hear more about like what you're hearing in your conversations with stakeholders about how do you address some of those challenges.

Britton Jones: Yes, you're right. Those are buzz words that a lot of people are using, even the most siloed organizations are using. We believe that we are not another conference. We are a campus. And again, a campus in its truest sense is bringing people together to learn, to share ideas and to share best practices, lessons learned, identify new opportunities for working together. And that's what we're really committed to doing.

Again, all of our content is really focused on actionable real-world solutions that these companies and organizations are undertaking today. We are not a place for people to come and talk about what they're going to do in 2050. We want people to be inspired, educated and empowered to take climate action today. So that's one of the most positive things that we are hearing.

Solutions don't really get amplified. They get amplified in a very limited way within these silos, where people have to pay high entrance fee or be invited to go to. We're trying to share these solutions, make climate action relatable to as many people as possible and get as many people as possible, again, inspired and educated as to what they can do today to make a difference.

Esther Whieldon: We just heard Britton talk about the importance of making Climate Week accessible. That really resonates with our approach in this podcast: meeting listeners where they are and their understanding of climate and sustainability, using plain English to explain these topics and avoiding jargon. Because, ultimately, climate change is something that impacts everyone, not just people that have sustainability and their job titles.

Lindsey Hall: Yes. And on a similar note, Angela also told me many of the events during Climate Week will be broadcast virtually. If you like more information on attending Climate Week NYC events, either in person or virtually, you can visit theclimategroup.org. We'll also include a link in our show notes to The Nest Climate Campus agenda. And for those listeners who will be in New York in person, we look forward to seeing many of you next month.

Thanks so much for listening to this episode of ESG Insider, and a special thanks to our producer, Kyle Cangialosi. Please be sure to subscribe to our podcast and sign up for our weekly newsletter, ESG Insider. See you next time.

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