Accelerating Action in Financial Sector Boardrooms
A hub for directors
What if every financial company had a climate target and a plan to meet it?
Climate and nature impacts are reshaping economies. Boards that act will drive resilience and long-term value.
As a Financial Sector non-executive director or trustee, this is your space for clear, practical resources. Through tailored guidance and global knowledge exchange, we can help you to lead more effective boardroom discussions, shape resilient strategy, and drive credible, sustained action.
We simplify complex climate and nature-related information to enable informed, forward-looking governance. Collaborating with mission-aligned partners across law, academia, policy, business, finance, and beyond, we ensure directors have access to the highest quality specialist knowledge and expertise.
Explore our practical tools and guidance below.
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Explore our practical tools and guidance
Navigating ESG and Climate Headwinds: Strategic Narratives for Financial Sector Boards
17 September 2025
The regulatory landscape is changing fast. Financial NEDs reveal their tips for articulating the business case for climate action in a way that’s commercially grounded and politically neutral and how to handle pushback in this Chatham House rules workshop during London Climate Action Week 2025.
Banks & SMEs: strengthening the relationship for a shared transition to net zero
29 July 2025
To reach net zero, banks can’t go it alone. Discover how transparent, collaborative relationships between banks and their SME clients play a crucial role in unlocking their transition and the risk exposure if they don’t.
Part III: Navigating Legal Duties & Sustainability in an Era of Divergence and Disruption
02 July 2025
Rounding off our three-part series, this article delves into what real-world directors say is and isn’t working when it comes to climate governance.
Part II: Navigating Legal Duties & Sustainability in an Era of Divergence and Disruption
03 June 2025
Strategic considerations for board directors who want to stay ahead of reforms related to the proposed changes to EU Sustainability Rules under ‘Omnibus’. With insights from Nathalie Dogniez, Chair of Eurosif from a workshop in Paris.
Transition Finance and Planning: From Strategy to Action
28 May 2025
This article draws on insights from a workshop hosted by the Climate Governance Initiative’s Financial Sector Programme, part of its “Transition in Action” series. The session took place at Ecosperity in Singapore on 7 May, bringing together directors, executives, and other finance professionals to explore how boards can lead credible, forward-looking transition planning.
Part I: Navigating Legal Duties & Sustainability in an Era of Divergence and Disruption
15 May 2025
What do directors’ legal duties require or permit? This guide is the first in a three-part series capturing insights from a workshop delivered by our Financial Sector team at the NED Program held alongside ChangeNOW in Paris.
The World Benchmarking Alliance 2025: 5 Actions for FS Boards to Lead
9 April 2025
With a focus on readiness to transition and more accurately represent climate, nature and social risks and opportunities, this special briefing with the World Benchmarking Alliance looks at how to advance leadership, resilience and protect company value – with five top actions for FS NEDs seeking to enhance performance. Presentation by Andrea Webster, Head of Finance System Transformation at the World Benchmarking Alliance and a Fireside Chat with Paul Druckman, WBA Supervisory Board Chair and Chapter Zero Fellow.
Transition Planning for Banks: 12 Tips for Board Directors
8 April 2025
As regulators set higher expectations, financial institutions must move toward rigorous, quantifiable, and operationally embedded transition plans. For boards, this is an opportunity to strengthen risk management and ensure long-term business resilience in the face of complex – but increasingly observable – climate, nature and social challenges faced by today’s economies.
Accelerating resilient, future-fit finance from the boardroom
19 February 2025
Discover the barriers, enablers and opportunities facing the financial sector when it comes to transition. With growing climate-related risks, financial boards need to be equipped and feel motivated to lead on climate from the boardroom to drive wider economic and societal resilience.
Incentivising financial firms to green the wider economy, beyond their own balance sheets
7 August 2024
In this webinar, our Financial Sector Hub and WTW explored the latest trends in major global markets for the financial sector regarding remuneration practices and climate change.
Does sustainability collaboration in finance, investment, and insurance breach competition law? Not necessarily …
13 November 2023
A conversation with Maurits Dolmans, partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, hosted by the Climate Governance Initiative Global Financial Sector Hub.
Managing greenwashing risk in the context of increased commitments
29 June 2023
The Financial Sector Hub hosted a session to help non-executive directors of financial institutions understand how to manage the risk of greenwashing in the context of increasing sustainable finance commitments.
Assessing corporate clients’ climate transition plans
9 May 2023
The Financial Sector Hub helps non-executive directors of financial institutions understand how such institutions can assess their clients’ climate transition plans.
The net-zero transition finance opportunity
9 March 2023
This online event, hosted by the CGI’s Financial Sector Hub, gives non-executive directors of financial institutions an overview of the opportunities of a transition to net-zero.
Banking on net zero: from commitment to action
4 April 2022
Watch the Financial Sector Hub’s webinar for non-executive directors of banks and financial institutions as they present the practicalities of putting together a net zero plan.
Climate change: Risk management and scenario analysis
30 November 2021
The Climate Governance Initiative’s Financial Sector Hub hosted an event to help non-executive directors of financial institutions understand how to approach climate risk in the board, climate risk governance and frameworks, and scenario analysis.
How financial institutions are tackling the net zero challenge
24 September 2021
This event from the Climate Governance Initiative’s Financial Sector Hub explored how financial institutions can define credible and transparent commitments to finance the transition to net zero while establishing a robust framework to monitor progress.
Meet our team
Simon Bowen
Programme Director
Simon has wide experience of leading programmes, operations, policy, risk, strategy and governance functions in UK government departments and financial services. Most recently, he was Head of Governance and Strategy for a directorate within the international group of HM Treasury. Simon holds an undergraduate degree in politics and international relations from the University of Hull and a master’s in international relations from the University of Cambridge. Simon’s master’s thesis focused on central banks’ developing role in re-positioning financial market rules within global climate governance regimes.
Charlene Cranny
Senior Programme Manager
Charlene is a Chartered Sustainable Investment and Finance professional with extensive experience in investment and finance industry associations. She has led policy and market interventions for fair, inclusive and regenerative economies, and at Volans acted as a consultant to FS companies on future-thinking and sustainability best practice and innovation. She is the founder of “Economy of Good”, through which she promotes ethical personal finance to mainstream media audiences.
Melissa Matthews
Communications Manager
Melissa manages the communications for the initiative’s Financial Sector Programme. She has worked on nature and climate issues for nearly 15 years and held pivotal communications roles at several environmental organisations including WWF and TRAFFIC, where she headed the global communications effort. She is experienced in delivering strategic communications and translating complex ideas for broad audiences.
Financial Sector Hub Steering Committee
The Financial Sector Programme works closely with the CGI Financial Sector Hub Steering Committee, a group of diverse and expert directors from across South America, North America, Central and Eastern Europe, and Asia. They provide the programme with valuable sectoral insights and develop materials — including webinars — to ensure that the unique needs of directors are met.
Lucyna Stanczak-Wuczynska, Chair (member of Chapter Zero Poland)
Chair of the Supervisory Board of BNP Paribas Bank Polska
Karina Litvack, member
(Ambassador, Climate Governance Initiative)
Non-Executive Director at Terna S.p.A.
Brooke Guven, member (member of US Climate Initiative)
Head of ESG & Sustainability, Managing Director, Chair of ESG Committee – Cerberus Capital Management
Sandra Morales, member (member of Chapter Zero Brazil)
Chapter Zero Brazil Project Manager, Environmental and Social Impact Manager at IBGC
Johan Raslan, (member of Climate Governance Malaysia)
Former Chairman, PwC Malaysia; Council member, Climate Governance Malaysia and board member, Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia
Miha Košak, member (Honorary Chairman, Chapter Zero Slovenia)
Former Independent Supervisory Council Member and Risk Committee Chair of Artea Bankas, former Deputy Chair of the Supervisory Board of NLB Group and Strategy Committee Chair, and former Supervisory Board Member of Abanka
Christopher Wells
Chapter Zero Brazil; Independent Consultant on Environmental Risk; Former Global Head of Environmental & Social Risk at Santander
Emma Houterman
CFO at Solar Duck (energy company), Finance committee, Foundation for Natural Leadership and Investment Committee, Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa)
Aidee Olmos
Head of Corporate Sustainability Mex & LAM en HSBC and Co-President of the executive council of Chapter Zero México
Ileana Salas
NED, Chair Risk & Investment Committees at GFMV Founding Chair of the Central America & Caribbean Chapter
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