Annabel Nelson is a finance and sustainability expert with over 25 years’ experience in global financial service firms.
She is a Strategic Advisor to CDP on financial institutions and the author of the Directors Briefing “Navigating Through Troubled Waters” which sets out the significance of water-related financial risks across the finance sector, to be published in summer 2024. She is also the Strategic Advisor on ESG and Sustainability to Co-Labs leveraging technology to develop pragmatic and commercial solutions, enabling firms to direct finance towards a sustainable and just transition of the global economy.
Previously she was Group Head of Sustainability Strategy and Policy at M&G plc reporting to the Group Chief Financial Officer and Head of Credit Market Relations and ESG at Prudential plc, where she led global credit investor and rating agency engagement for the GBP7 billion debt rebalance and demerger of M&G from Prudential.
Annabel is a regular speaker on sustainability issues affecting the sector including at the World Leaders Summit at COP 26 and PRI in Person. She sits on the UK Sustainable Investment & Finance Association Policy Committee and was a member of the Association of British Insurers Climate Working Group.
Annabel is a Chartered Accountant and Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and holds a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford.
Workshop Room 3 (Level 3)
Elevating ESG
This workshop is jointly hosted by Ethereum Climate Fund, Global Blockchain Business Council, and Consensys.
Climate change presents one of the most significant challenges of our time, with potential global damages reaching $23 trillion annually by 2050. Proactive climate action is not only cost-effective—with an estimated $4 trillion needed annually to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050—but also essential to prevent far greater economic and societal costs.
For effective climate action, the participation of the finance industry is vital. Financial institutions play a key role in driving the transition to a more sustainable future through strategic investments in decarbonisation and innovation. Climate Tech firms and infrastructure, as well as the transformation of existing firms and infrastructure, will both require partnership with FIs to create tangible impact. Governments and regulators, through supportive policies, can create the environment which fosters these advancements.
In this workshop, discover the innovative approaches organisations are adopting to create powerful opportunities for collaboration and information networking globally.
Hall C (Level 2)
Elevating ESG
The evolution of ESG data has been driven by increased demand from a broader range of users, for a variety of purposes and objectives, potentially prioritising different outcomes. Users of ESG data have to contend with identifying relevant, reliable, comparable information from the huge volume of data ‘noise’, from which they can draw insights, to make decisions and be accountable for their actions.
Enterprises are wrestling with onerous disclosure requirements, and provide more granular detail to comply with regulation and meet their diverse stakeholders’ needs. They face greater sanctions for greenwashing or greenhushing. At the same time their stakeholders’ are also assessing their ESG performance using data from sources external to the enterprise.
This discussion will explore the challenges and opportunities of evolving sources of ESG data, and how they are being applied and the potential future developments needed to ensure greater value creation.