About

Prior to the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit program on May 30-31, leading organizations and P4G partnerships will host a series of official side events. These discussions will include the perspectives of high-level leaders and be focused on scaling market-based solutions to deliver impact.   

The Korean New Deal and Smart Buildings: Fighting Climate Change while Creating Jobs and Growth 

This event will showcase how the green restart, and the Korean New Deal in particular, can help economies recover while accelerating our journey towards net zero emissions. It will look at how governments and the private sector are working to build smarter, more energy-efficient commercial buildings – and enable greater growth and climate action. Register here to join the session on May 25 from 15:30-17:00 KST / 2:30-4:00 EST. 

Steering the Green Transition in Farming and Food – Innovative Technology as a Key Driver 

Food Nations first Global Food Talk on innovative technology will prompt attendees to gain knowledge on game-changing technological solutions, scalable actions and partnership models for sustainable development. They will be inspired by international stakeholders focusing on the possibilities of innovative technology as a driver to accelerate the transformation of food systems and become motivated to take action towards green transition and share ideas to act towards the UN Food System Summit 2021. Register here to join the session on May 25 from 21:00-22:00 / 8:00-9:00 EST.  

Green Insights: Toward Carbon Neutrality in Korea and Denmark 

At this event, South Korea and Denmark will share knowledge, solutions and challenges towards carbon neutrality. High-level speakers from both countries will present climate plans and ambitions based on partnerships towards a greener future. The purpose of the event is to highlight the ambitions towards carbon reductions and carbon neutrality of both Denmark and Korea, as well as build a partnership between the Korean and Danish side through a signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Korea Energy Information Culture Agency (KEIA) and State of Green. Register here to join the session on May 26 from 15:00-16:40 KST / 2:00-3:40 EST. 

Investing in a Just Transition: How Benchmarks can Reorient Capital for People and Planet 

This event will explore how a just transition can help to ensure a green and inclusive recovery and more sustainable future aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. The session will focus specifically on how investors can engage more meaningfully with companies and allocate capital to more effectively meet these goals. Speakers will also discuss how the World Benchmarking Alliance's Just Transition methodology and company assessments can support investors in holding companies accountable for their efforts to decarbonize, while protecting the rights and wellbeing of their workers and the communities in which they operate. Register here to join the session on May 27 from 17:00-18:30 KST / 4:00-5:30 EST. 

Biogas To Green Hydrogen 

How do we create viable state, municipal and private sector partnerships in moving from biogas to green hydrogen? Join leading Korean and Danish players and discuss ways of finding decentralized solutions to global problems. Register here to join the event on May 27 from 16:30-18:30 KST / 3:30-5:30 EST. 

A High-Level Dialogue between P4G Sustainable Food Partnership CEOs; Unfolding an Innovative Partnership Model and SDG2 Impact Solutions 

This high-level conversation between CEOs and high-level speakers will bring together key representatives from the P4G Partnership Sustainable Food Partnership and the P4G network to critically unfold the complexity and uniqueness of engaging in these types of partnerships. The discussion will include what challenges the food sector encounters in Ethiopia and beyond, and which solutions should be put in place to address these challenges. Register here to join the session on May 28 from 20:00-21:30 KST / 7:00-8:30 EST. 

Offshore Wind, 12GW and Beyond 

This side event on offshore wind will present key features and experiences generated from Korea and Denmark concerning regulatory frameworks, initiatives to de-risk investments, spatial marine planning, market conditions and technological solutions. The side-event will also present a new study on the cost of energy in Korea generated by the Korean-Danish partnership on energy in collaboration with the Dutch embassy in Korea. Join to learn insights from Korean, Danish and Dutch stakeholders sharing know-how, experiences and the future potential of offshore wind energy. Register here to join the event on May 28 from 15:00-17:30 KST / 2:00-4:30 EST. 

International Cooperation to Facilitate the Adoption of E-Mobility for the Sustainable Development in GGGI Members 

The event aims to bring together diverse stakeholders to share the experiences and lessons learned from the examples of ongoing/completed electric mobility activities. Government officials, business leaders, experts, practitioners and investors will debate the progress, challenges ahead and innovative collaboration, their visible impacts to date as well as policy and investment needs and challenges. Participants will engage through chat room discussions to share their comments and views on some key innovations and to encourage networking and collaboration. Register here to join the session on May 28 from 21:00 –22:30 KST / 8:00-9:30 EST. 

Global Investor Action and Initiatives Towards Net-Zero 

The Asia Investor Group on Climate Change (AIGCC) is hosting a global C-level investor panel, “Global Investor Action and Initiatives Towards Net-Zero” on behalf of The Investor Agenda at the P4G Global Summit in Seoul. It aims to help catalyze Asian investors, particularly those in South Korea adopt climate change strategies into their portfolios and participate in relevant global investor initiatives that have been actively progressing in other markets. Register here to join the session on May 31 from 15:00-18:00 KST / 2:00 – 5:00 EST.  

P4G Entrepreneurs and SMEs Challenge 

Throughout this event, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups of the Republic of Korea (MSS) and ASEM SMEs Eco-Innovation Center (ASEIC) will provide networking opportunities among innovative start-ups, SMEs, and investors to develop business and publicize their businesses. Moreover, the P4G Entrepreneurs and SMEs Challenge will provide an effective networking platform for both companies and the investor through the online exhibition and IR pitching session. The P4G Entrepreneurs and SMEs Challenge will also endeavor to make the environment more sustainable through the development of eco-friendly technologies and business activities by companies. Register here to join the session on May 31 from 18:00-20:00 KST / 5:00 – 7:00 EST. 

For a full list of official Summit sessions occurring from May 24-31, visit the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit website. 

About

On 19-20 October, 800 leaders spanning 53 countries convened in Denmark for the P4G Copenhagen Summit: a first-of-its-kind event inspiring, accelerating and recognizing partnerships between governments, businesses, and members of civil society to drive inclusive growth and measurable progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Five heads of state from Denmark, Ethiopia, Netherlands, South Korea and Vietnam demonstrated the political leadership and commitment to P4G. Executives from some of the world’s largest corporations including Alibaba, BYD, Blackrock, IBM, Maersk, Novo Nordisk, Siemens, SAP, SK Telecom, Unilever and Vestas were among those leading Summit conversations and objectives around accelerating partnerships. Leaders from civil society and global NGOs like C40 Cities and DanChurchAid, Global Green Growth Institute, World Economic Forum and World Resources Institute also helped ensure Summit discussions centered around inclusive growth and social and environmental benefits. 

In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen of Denmark commented, “You are here for a reason: to bring hope and practical solutions to a world in need of it… and to show the world what strong partnerships can do, and what an alliance of action can bring.”

Over the next two days, ‘action’ was the driving force behind every session.

“To implement all of the Sustainable Development Goals, it would cost the world about three to five trillion dollars per year to implement,” began Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, early on Day One. “That sounds like a lot. But if you look at each of the goals, we’re probably spending more by not acting. Climate change is supposed to be costing us 3.5 trillion dollars a year. Keeping women from the same rights as men could be costing 20 trillion dollars a year. The cost of wars and conflict is costing the world 10-12 percent of the global GDP. If we work together to find solutions, there is an enormous payout on any of these goals.”

Later in the afternoon, 24 P4G partnerships and 15 State-of-the-Art partnership finalists split into five sector tracks -- food and agriculture, water, energy, cities and the circular economy – to address the needs and issues specific to their focus areas, and to offer expert advice and support for more successful partnerships.

Prime Minister Rasmussen joined P4G scale-up partnership Africa GreenCo in the Energy track to learn about their pursuit to improve energy access and financing in Zambia and other African countries. In the wake of his visit, GreenCo CEO Ana Hajduka and her team remarked, “We are honored to be part of the P4G family. Now the onus is on us to deliver, which we will do.”

Drivers of the Building Efficiency Accelerator, another P4G scale-up partnership, emphasized how much more connected the Summit allowed their partnership to become.

“The Summit created a wealth of opportunity to forge new relationships with a diverse set of stakeholders all invested in helping the world meet the SDGs. With P4G's support we are excited to be able to scale-up our impact on building energy efficiency in cities,” remarked Lisa Bate, WorldGBC Chair.

Deputy CEO Rachel Muthoga of Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA), which serves as P4G’s national platform partner in Kenya, added, “Our personal benefit is that it gave us so much time to talk about some of the issues we heard here, and thus identify what we are missing back home. It was so helpful to have that chance to quickly come together and create key steps for both how to move forward and how to tackle them together.”

Day Two of the Summit brought together five heads of state on the same stage. President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc of Vietnam, former President Mulatu Teshome Wirtu of Ethiopia, Prime Minister Marke Rutte of the Netherlands and Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen of Denmark together addressed the 800-person crowd with a collective need: we must work together to achieve a more sustainable world.

President Moon Jae-in reiterated in his message that transcending borders and sectors is foundational for a better future. “I believe that our power to accomplish sustainable development and respond to the climate change crisis lies in a love for humankind,” he began. “I propose that countries place the spirit of inclusiveness at the center of their relationships for the sake of sustainable growth. Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales, which are loved by people around the world, end with the following sentence: ‘and they lived happily ever after.’ We want such an ending. For sustainable growth and climate change response, the Republic of Korea will always stand with the international community in support of the spirit and implementation of P4G.”

Following the opening session, former Prime Minister of Norway and the “mother of sustainable development” Gro Harlem Brundtland joined two young innovators paving the way for the next generation of green growth advocates.

“The Commission delivered our report in 1987. It took 28 years before 2015 where both the SDGs and the Paris Agreement were made. If you think about the drama of the changes in the world, but also the radical change that is necessary, it is fantastic that it did not take more than 28 years,” she reflected. “We have built consensus, but it has taken some decades. This consensus happened in 2015, and now we are on the road to do what is necessary – which is what we are figuring out here.”

The Summit concluded with the recognition of P4G’s scale-up partnership funding recipients and the awarding of the 2018 Partnership of the Year award to the Courtald Commitment 2025, a P4G State-of-the-Art partnership cutting the cost of food and drink to minimize food waste and provide more widespread access to sustainably-sourced products.

“P4G is all about building and scaling global commitments to workable solutions,” remarked Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess of Denmark as the Summit came to a close. “Our global journey is towards a sustainable economy that protects and preserves our planet and its richness. Where there is no poverty or hunger, and all human beings can fulfill their potential in dignity and equality. And where peaceful, just and inclusive societies are fostered that are free from fear and violence. P4G is a new initiative, and I hope the partnerships we celebrate here today as global examples of excellence serve as examples to accelerate our common journey.”

With the conclusion of the Summit, honored guests and participants returned to their home countries and their organizations with a clear message: the journey has only just begun. In the coming weeks and months, the 24 P4G Partnerships from the 2018 funding period will continue to develop their plans for scaling and implementation. The six scale-up partnerships among this group will use their newly awarded funding to contribute to systems change and commercial viability for green innovations in the most pressing areas of sustainable growth.

On November 30, 2018 the P4G Hub will also launch its next call for applications in order to begin to identify more innovative partnerships pursuing an inclusive, sustainable future. Learn more about P4G partnerships here.

About

P4G organizational partner World Economic Forum will host a P4G Green Growth Session as part of The Forum’s Sustainable Development Impact Summit in New York. P4G will connect members of its board and leaders within its network with three scale-up partnership finalists innovating towards green growth. The session will allow the P4G scale-up finalists to present their projects to investors and business leaders who will then pose solutions to the specific challenges each partnership is facing, while also encouraging all attendees to commit to action upon sustainable solutions in their unique positions as public and private sector leaders.

President and CEO of World Resources Institute Andrew Steer will facilitate the event. He will be joined by Dutch Minister for Development Ms. Sigrid Kaag and Danish State Secretary for Development Martin Hermann.

“P4G’s vision is one of highly collaborative change. In its aim of becoming the world’s leading forum for public-private partnerships delivering on the global goals, P4G is matching the best ideas with political and financial networks across the globe,” said Steer. “The featured partnerships at this Green Growth Session will be valuable case studies for how cross-sector action move change forward.”

Frank Rijsberman, Director-General of GGGI, Torben Moger Pedersen, CEO of PensionDenmark, and Dr. Julius Muia of the Kenya National Treasury will join the session as “Firestarter” leaders to extend first-hand experience with the opportunities and challenges in the green growth and sustainable development goal field. The firestarters will help both identify challenges for each partnership and direct discussion towards potential solutions.

PARTNERSHIPS:

SSEZ Africa

Introduced by Amy Jadesimi, Managing Director and CEO, LADOL

The Made in Africa Initiative, led by SYSTEMIQ and with support from UNDP, will integrate sustainability in the planning and operations of Special Economic Zones, with an initial focus on industrial parks in Ethiopia and Kenya. Through the institution of sustainable special economic zones (SSEZ), this partnership will focus on promoting human rights and curbing the environmental impact of industrial production, while aiming to extend economic growth and job creation beyond the enclave of the zone. Building upon previous successes in Nigeria, this partnership will promote sustainable energy and the reuse of water and waste.

AfricaGreenCo

Introduced by Ana Haiduka, CEO, Africa GreenCo

Across the 15 countries that make up the South Africa Development Community, less than a quarter of the population have access to electricity, while in rural areas that number goes down to 5 percent.  GreenCo is a public-private-partnership between African governmental organizations, the private sector and international financial institutions to create a dynamic new participant in the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).  GreenCo will be a regional creditworthy intermediary offtaker and power services provider, reducing the credit risk and therefore cost of renewable energy generation projects.  Its initial focus will be on supporting projects in Zambia prior to expanding into other SAPP member countries.  GreenCo’s transformative role is to mobilise significant private sector finance for the sector, to increase the liquidity of and reliance on the SAPP markets for risk mitigation and begin to diversify away from the current model of African governments taking on heavy contingent liabilities to secure individual energy projects.  Ultimately, improving energy access will enhance education, health care, and stimulate economic development in a part of the world with the highest concentrations of people living in poverty.

Representation from the third partnership is yet to be confirmed by one of the following:

The Zero Emission Bus Rapid-deployment Accelerator

Introduced by C40 Representative

The Zero Emission Bus Rapid-deployment Accelerator (ZEBRA) will partner with Mexico City and São Paulo—two megacities each with more than 20 million residents—and Medellín, Colombia to increase their deployment of electric buses. Replacing diesel buses with electric buses leads to cleaner air and a reduction in carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. Led by C40 Cities and the International Council on Clean Transportation, ZEBRA expects to secure a public commitment from regional finance institutions to invest USD 1 billion in zero-emissions electric drive technology in Latin America by 2021. In addition, ZEBRA will gain commitments from major bus and engine manufacturers to support the growth of electric buses in Latin America through collaboration with cities on vehicle specifications, charging strategies, pilot projects, and financing.

Green Logistics City Partnership

Introduced by Alibaba Representative

China’s Alibaba is estimated to be the world’s largest e-commerce company in terms of market share. Its Cainiao Network handles express delivery with its logistics partners for about 28 billion of these packages sent annually to locations in China. The growth of e-commerce in China has created a need to both reduce and recycle more of the plastic and cardboard used to pack and transport products. A new effort by the Global Smart Green Logistics Innovation Partnership aims to expand a successful green logistics pilot program in Xiamen to many other Chinese cities by 2020. The Partnership is led by the China Environmental Protection Foundation, Cainiao Network and the Xiamen Municipal Government Transportation. In Xiamen, a port city of 3.5 million people, Cainiao has set up more than 100 green campus and last-mile community dispatch stations. Cainiao provides an advanced technology platform to power the green logistics management systems. This platform provides real-time analytics and monitoring of pick-up and dispatch of packages. Packaging waste materials are gathered, sorted and processed for treatment and recycling. More and more electric vehicles are used for the local delivery, helping to reduce air pollution. Since the pilot’s launch in 2017, more than one million delivery boxes have been recycled for reuse. Additionally, a green packaging service is now covering all the express delivery networks in the city. The Partnership will lead efforts to expand the Xiamen pilot to other Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. This includes feasibility studies, policy engagement, a peer-to-peer learning network, and training and certification. The Partnership also will establish and open platform to promote green logistics innovation and adoption worldwide.

About

APRIL 26, COPENHAGEN: Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen of Denmark today announced that Copenhagen will host the very first P4G Summit on October 19 and 20, 2018.

The P4G Summit will gather Heads of States and Government, leaders of international organizations, businesses, academia and civil society to form a powerful coalition for delivering on the sustainable development goals through innovative partnerships. Already, P4G is expecting participation from South Korea, Vietnam, Bangladesh, China, Singapore, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Mexico, Chile and Colombia.

The Summit will showcase partnerships of large-scale impact, highlighting P4G partnerships selected for funding and facilitation while also drawing upon the P4G network of partners, organizations and individuals to inspire furthered connection for scaling up innovative climate solutions.

Thematically, the P4G Summit in Copenhagen will highlight “healthy cities” as one of the Initiative’s five focus areas. The Initiative recognizes rapid urbanization – and the necessity for health and sustainability in these growing spaces -- as a high demand area for green growth solutions.

The P4G Copenhagen Summit marks an important first step in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. As partnerships emerge it will be critical to move quickly to define process and progress for each partnership.

For more information about the P4G Summit, visit the P4G website at p4gpartnerships.org or the Summit Homepage at p4gsummit.org.