In support of His Majesty King Charles III’s visits to Australia and Samoa, for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), SMI launches further support for Commonwealth Member States

• Pacific Hub launched in Australia to enhance alignment of industry, finance and country efforts to accelerate delivery on global climate and biodiversity targets.
• Marine Mangrove Sanctuary launched in partnership with SpaceX and Rotary International in Samoa to restore mangrove ecosystems, mitigate sea level rise, increase community connectivity and preserve cultural heritage for future generations.
• Private Sector Training Programme for government officials extended to enhance public-private partnerships and project delivery in the Commonwealth.
• SMI’s Impact Accelerator, along with a recommendation to establish High-Level Climate Investment Authorities, launched to provide end-to-end support for governments to develop industry partnerships and investment ready projects aligned with sustainable transition.
• The SMI’s Nature-Risk Tool, developed by AECOM, has been made available to all Commonwealth member states to assist them in assessing Nature-risks associated with physical infrastructure and urban planning.
• The Natural Capital on African Governments’ Balance Sheets Initiative launched to explore making natural capital assets as a core component of national balance sheets.

In the presence of His Majesty King Charles III, as well as leaders from the Commonwealth as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting’s Business Forum, the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) has launched several initiatives to further enhance its commitment and support to Commonwealth Members States.

• Pacific Hub: Connecting SMI’s global CEOs with CEOs and climate leaders in Australia, the SMI launched its Pacific Hub to enhance alignment of industry, finance and country efforts to accelerate delivery on global climate and biodiversity targets.
• Marine Mangrove Sanctuary: In collaboration with Rotary International and Space X, the SMI is launching a Marine Mangrove Sanctuary in Samoa to restore and maintain the mangrove ecosystem, mitigating sea level rise and preserving cultural heritage.
• Private Sector Training Programme: SMI introduces a climate-based training programme for government officials in Commonwealth Member States. This programme will support the delivery of climate and biodiversity-related projects and the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions.
• Impact Accelerator:  SMI launches its Impact Accelerator for Commonwealth Member States which provides end-to-end support for Governments to develop industry partnerships and investment ready projects aligned with sustainable transition.  The SMI further recommends establishing High-level Climate Investment Authorities within governments to better coordinate and crowd-in private sector support and investment.
• Nature Risk Tool: SMI’s Nature Risk Tool, developed by AECOM, will now be available to all Commonwealth nations to assess the impact of infrastructure on local biodiversity globally.
• The Natural Capital on African Governments’ Balance Sheets Initiative was launched as an institutional investor-public partnership, led by the SMI Africa Council. This initiative aims to embed Nature as an investable asset class.

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.