COP28 Business & Philanthropy Climate Forum to see over 1,000 heads of state, CEOs and heads of NGOs take part

The inaugural COP28 Business & Philanthropy Climate Forum, hosted by the COP28 Presidency, will open on 30 November at Expo City, Dubai.

The Forum, taking place from 1-2 December alongside the World Climate Action Summit, will convene over 1,000 global Heads of State, Government, business CEOs, philanthropists and heads of NGOs seeking to accelerate and showcase progress on climate targets and industry transition through dynamic public, private, philanthropy collaboration. This first of its kind multi-stakeholder engagement Forum is driven by the UAE's ambition to host an inclusive climate conference that marshals full and broad support with engagement from all regions of the world.

Speaking on the Forum and the private sector’s broader role to play, Dr. Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, COP28 President, Dr. Sultan Al Jaber said, "We are committed to hosting a fully inclusive COP, and it would be impossible to do this without the vital input of our business and philanthropy communities. The Business & Philanthropy Climate Forum at COP28 is a key part of our Presidency’s agenda, and will help deliver concrete outcomes from the private and philanthropic sectors. The time is now for businesses and philanthropists to step up and play a leading role in helping the world meet net zero pathways.”

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The Forum has announced ‘A Showcase Compendium of Collective Action’ that details initiatives and high-level outcomes underpinned by the COP28 Action Agenda’s four key pillars of Energy Transition, Climate Finance, People & Nature, and Inclusion.

The Showcase sets out initiatives that are working to harness the power of global decision-makers across public, private and philanthropic sectors to urgently tackle the climate crisis, achieve net-zero emissions, reverse nature loss and restore biodiversity. Examples of these initiatives to be platformed at the Forum include:

• The Climate Investment Platform - a climate tech fund to scale up proven climate technologies in the Global South focusing on emissions reduction.

• The Climate and Nature Moonshots – funding for innovation projects focused on Coral Restoration and Energy Transitions.

• The First Movers Coalition – a coalition that commits to purchasing products/services based on clean technologies to support the decarbonisation of high emitting industrial sectors.

• The Indigenous People’s Outcome – a fund to provide direct financing for Indigenous Peoples and organisations, to help them protect and restore nature and biodiversity.

COP28 Special Representative for Business and Philanthropy and Chair of the Forum Badr Jafar stated, "We are starting to create real and meaningful progress towards the green transition by putting the private sector at the heart of the conversation. Our action-oriented agenda directed towards the world’s top decision-makers aims to zero in on where public-business-philanthropic partnerships can accelerate, replicate, and scale while shifting the dialogue from billions to the trillions that are required.”

Jennifer Jordan-Saifi, CEO of the Sustainable Markets Initiative, commented, "A sustainable future is the growth story of our time. To seize it, we need to define and align country, industry, and financial roadmaps. We also need to recognise and celebrate the steps leaders, companies and investors are making in the right direction. The COP28 Business Philanthropy and Climate Forum is a unique opportunity for the world’s top decision-makers to work with their peers to raise ambition, assess progress and hold up the mirror of accountability”.

The Forum’s strategic delivery partner is the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI). Additional Forum delivery partners include: International Finance Corporation (IFC), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - Network of Foundations Working for Development (OECD netFWD), World Economic Forum (WEF), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), IDB Invest, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and XPRIZE.

WAM