Chair: Andrus Treier (Estonian Environmental Investment Centre)

Panelists: 

Merit Valdsalu (CEO of Single Earth)

Rodrigo Cassola (Senior Programme Officer, UNEP-WCMC)

Maja Mikosińska (Deputy Head of Unit ‘LIFE Environment’, CINEA)

Kadri Vunder Fontana (Luminor Bank)

The plenary discussion will focus on the urgent need for progressive integration of finance and biodiversity. How can we achieve a situation where the good condition of nature is an integral and vital part of our economies and societies, supported by sufficient institutional and private consideration and funding? Will this happen when we successfully translate environmental metrics into financial language? Should we put more emphasis on methods that integrate the state of nature into economic processes and value chains? Or can we only move towards a more responsible and sustainable economy through education and shift in value systems, as these are fundamental to any significant change? Banks and the insurance sector are at the forefront, already mapping and addressing climate threats. How is the same approach progressing for biodiversity and ecological restoration?

The plenary discussion will tackle all these questions, and together with esteemed and diverse participants, we will explore policies, strategies, and practices that have the potential to be economically viable, equitable, and beneficial for both nature and for our shared future.

Experts will delve into the pivotal roles of academia, public, and private sectors. Key topics include:

• Exploring the financial sector's role in accelerating the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon, and nature-positive economy.
• Sharing ideas on aligning state and business strategies (e.g., products and services) with biodiversity, climate, and restoration goals, and catalyzing sustainable finance based on clear metrics.
• Sharing best practices and innovative solutions to integrate biodiversity, ecosystem services, and restoration efforts into business management.

This plenary discussion is organized and supported by the Estonian Environmental Investment Centre (EIC) in collaboration with SERE2024. The EIC, a state foundation, serves as a granting authority for climate, biodiversity, and restoration investments. Join us to be part of a transformative conversation that shapes the future of our environment, economy, and restoration efforts.

Andrus Treier is the CEO of Environmental Investment Centre (EIC), he has led the organisation for more than four years. EIC is a provider of innovative, smart and impactful solutions in the Estonian environmental landscape. With the support of EIC and various sources of financing, more than 27,000 environmental projects have been carried out with a total of more than 2.9 billion euros in grants. In addition, EIC sets up and leads projects and initiatives to enhance the good state of environment and to search and offer additional funding for environmental actions to meet the climate goals of Estonia.

Previously, Andrus Treier has led the government owned guarantee and loan institution Kredex. He has been a CEO and CFO in multiple companies and worked as an auditor and consultant in an international business consulting firm KPMG. He has a master’s degree in strategic management from University of Tartu.

Merit Valdsalu is an Estonian entrepreneur and environmental advocate, co-founder and CEO of Single.Earth. Single.Earth incentivizes landowners to preserve natural ecosystems by offering financial rewards for conservation. Combining environmental efforts with blockchain technology, it aims to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss through sustainable land management.

Kadri Vunder Fontana is a strategic sustainability leader with a passion for driving positive environmental and social impact. As a board member of Cervo Volante, she champions innovative solutions to protect biodiversity and the natural world. As the head of Group  Sustainability at Luminor Bank, she builds up financial institution capabilities to assess nature impact of financing portfolios.

With experience spanning venture philanthropy, social enterprises, and corporate sustainability, Kadri brings a diverse perspective on mobilizing finance and partnerships to scale up climate change impact adaptation and mitigation and biodiversity conservation efforts. She is excited to share insights on emerging trends in nature impact consideration in financing decisions for unlocking new sources of funding for impactful biodiversity initiatives.

Kadri holds a PhD from the University of St. Gallen and is based in Tallinn, Estonia. She is committed to facilitating cross-sector dialogue and catalyzing transformative change to safeguard the health of our planet for current and future generations.

Maja Mikosinska –  European Commission civil servant since 2007 and since 2022 deputy head of unit in LIFE Environment unit in European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA).  She has over 15 years of experience in management of EU funding instruments in different policy areas, in particular environment and climate action. Maja has worked for the LIFE programme in the EU institutions  for over 10 years in different capacities, primarily in support of  nature conservation projects across the EU.

Rodrigo has over 20 years of experience at the crossroads of business, finance, and biodiversity. He leads UNEP-WCMC’s Finance for Nature workstream and is a senior member of its Nature Economy team. His work is focused on integrating biodiversity and natural capital into financial decision-making through data, knowledge, and tools. Before UNEP-WCMC, he led the technical development of CDP's forest disclosure framework and was with the Brazilian government for over a decade.