SUSTAINABLE MARKETS INITIATIVE UNVEILS SUPPORT TO COMMONWEALTH MEMBER STATES AT CHOGM

Jennifer Jordan-Saifi M.V.O., CEO of the Sustainable Markets Initiative, emphasised the urgency of these initiatives: "It is an honour to be in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). Being welcomed into the community of Nono'a Saleimoa to launch their Mangrove Sanctuary, we saw first-hand how Pacific communities are on the front lines of climate change and biodiversity loss. With future generations in mind, we also saw the passion of community members for restoring harmony with Nature.  The SMI is delighted to bring private sector CEOs together with Commonwealth governments at CHOGM, and through our new Pacific Hub, to accelerate practical, scalable actions that advance a genuinely sustainable future for all."

Recognizing the importance of biodiversity restoration across the Commonwealth, Dr Hubert Danso, Co-Chair of the SMI Africa Council, highlighted that "Africa's natural capital forms the backbone not only of our economies, but also of global business models and societies. To protect and expand this value, we must invest at scale in our ecosystems. Through mandate-aligned institutional investor-public partnerships with governments, we can unlock risk and Nature-adjusted returns, that drive benefits for Nature, people and planet.  Through these efforts we aim to demonstrate that what's good for Africa and the world, can also create sustainable value for investors."

Pacific Hub

The new SMI Pacific Hub, is the latest addition to the Sustainable Markets Initiative's regional engagement activities, joining a cohort of five other Hubs and Councils including North America, Africa, China, India, and Greece.  As part of its regional and country approach, the Pacific Hub will provide a forum for CEOs to look more practically at sustainability efforts across industry and finance while exploring how the region's private sector is actively working with governments to support Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and biodiversity targets in the region.

Marine Mangrove Sanctuary

The Sustainable Markets Initiative announces the Marine Mangrove Sanctuary in collaboration with Rotary International and SpaceX. The sanctuary in Nono'a Saleimoa, Samoa will restore and maintain the mangrove ecosystem to mitigate the onset of sea level rise.  Starlink will enable project leads to record, in real-time, key data points regarding the progress of the project such as: number of mangrove seedlings planted, growth of seedlings, time spent planting and maintaining the site, and general updates from site visits. The project demonstrates the value of remote access connectivity to support underserved and remote communities across the Commonwealth. The SMI's partnership with Starlink includes a focus on rapidly scaling support for Nature-capital and post-disaster monitoring.

Government Training Programme

The Sustainable Markets Initiative will now offer Commonwealth Member States access to its highly successful Government Training Programme, which has so far had over 800 participants from over 85 countries register worldwide. The programme has convened subject matter experts from across the public and private sectors along with non-governmental organisations to develop climate-based training that can help support government officials (and others) responsible for delivering and developing climate-related projects and the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

SMI Impact Accelerator and High-Level Climate Investment Authority

The SMI also offers support through its Impact Accelerator.  The private sector is ready to mobilize capital, however to date there is a limited pipeline of "investment-ready" projects. The Sustainable Markets Initiative strives to fill this gap by offering end-to-end support for project development, industry partnerships and capacity building.  Recognizing the urgency and complexity of public-private partnerships for transition, we strongly recommend that High-Level Climate Investment Authorities (HCIA) be established to offer an empowered and coordinated docking point that is focused on private sector partnerships and capital mobilization.  The SMI has a range of guidance available on how to best establish these HCIAs.

SMI Nature Risk Tool

The Sustainable Markets Initiative has recently launched its SMI Nature Risk Tool and is now offering it to all Commonwealth Member States.  The SMI Nature Risk Tool recognizes that infrastructure development often leads to habitat loss, biodiversity decline, pollution, and increased greenhouse gas emissions. Powered by AECOM, and using datasets from the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), the SMI Nature Risk Tool enables infrastructure investors and promoters to analyse any piece of land globally, providing expert-reviewed descriptions of the location's habitat and biomes early in the site selection process.

About The Sustainable Markets Initiative

Founded by His Majesty King Charles III in 2020, then the Prince of Wales, the Sustainable Markets Initiative has become the world's 'go-to' private sector organisation on transition.  Launched in 2021, the Terra Carta serves as the Sustainable Markets Initiative's mandate with a focus on accelerating positive results for Nature, People and Planet through real economy action.  Complementing the Terra Carta, the Astra Carta was launched in 2023 to support a default sustainable approach to space while leveraging space resources for sustainability on Earth.  Read more: www.sustainable-markets.org

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