P4G Global Director Joins Two High-Level Panels to Promote Green Growth

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In April, P4G Global Director Ian de Cruz attended the UN Climate & SDGS Synergy Conference in Copenhagen, soon followed by the Leaders on Purpose CEO Summit in Washington DC. Both events aimed to emphasize cross-sectoral and political collaboration in advance of major climate, finance and sustainable development gatherings later this year.

At the UN Climate and SDGs Synergy Conference, de Cruz spoke as a panelist at the “Synergies in Action” session to promote integrated, cross-sectoral approaches to the SDGs. The conference was organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and hosted by the Danish Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Utilities and Climate. Its main focus was the convergence of global, regional and state-level stakeholders to coordinate diverse approaches to achieving climate commitments – especially as related to Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) from the 2016 Paris Agreement – and the SDGs, to stimulate consequential and concerted action.

“P4G’s concrete examples of public-private partnerships delivering measurable green growth solutions are central to illustrating the potential of an interlinked approach to inclusive growth, sustainable development goals and climate action. We all need to encourage strategic integration of shared agendas and the emerging partnerships approach with tangible contributions not only from governments but also the private sector and civil society.” said de Cruz.

The Leaders on Purpose CEO Summit brought together several of the world’s top leaders in interactive learning sessions on how to build a more just and sustainable world through the lens of the SDGs. At this event, de Cruz moderated a panel about “Going the Distance to the Global Goals: Partnerships and Collaboration 4.0.” The discussion included Remi Eriksen, CEO of DNVGL, Barri Rafferty, CEO of Ketchum/Omnicom, Chirsta Gyori, CEO of Leaders on Purpose, Barbara Humpton, CEO of Siemens USA and Marc-André Blanchard, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations.

The panel highlighted collaboration across sectors by CEOs that link their personal purpose-driven agendas to those of the SDGs. At the center of the discussion was the guiding questions: how do we achieve the Global Goals in the next 10 years, and how should CEOs and leaders incorporate this need into their business and organizational strategies? Each panelist brought inspiring examples that are already emerging through alliances between governments, businesses and civil society organizations to drive inclusive and equitable growth. Leaders also cited the opportunity for $12 trillion economic growth inherent in pursuing the sustainable development agenda.

Using public-private partnerships as a driving strategy, the Leaders on Purpose CEO Summit made a clear argument for business investment in environmental, human and societal development objectives – an approach at the core of P4G’s mission.

P4G accelerates and funds 17 start-up and scale-up partnerships from its 2018 cohort led by civil society organizations in emerging economies and expects to fund a similar number again in 2019.