Programme
What is our programme of events?
Our programme of 30+ events convenes stakeholders from across finance and beyond, both in-person and virtually
Our events programme is directly aligned with the COP26 themes and will convene finance, business, political and civic leaders from across the globe at two iconic Scottish locations. Across the two weeks our action-orientated round tables, workshops, lectures and summits will bring together international experts to showcase best practice and leading thinkers to inspire climate action.
Our event programme
Adam Smith at the COP

Events at COP26 (Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow)
Monday 8th November – The Accumulation and Employment of Capital: Stewardship in the Climate Era
What responsibility do the owners and managers of capital have to ensure it is used properly? This evening lecture will draw inspiration from Book II of the Wealth of Nations. Chapter update author, investor and former Chair of UNEP FI during COP21 David Pitt-Watson will be joined by Royal London CEO Barry O’Dwyer, as well as other speakers to be confirmed. Together, they will ask what the principle of stewardship means for the owners and managers of capital, and discuss how the issues of climate change and environmental protection change the way we think about capital accumulation, and whether the often-discussed concept of ‘natural capital’ has been properly integrated into business practice and national accounts. Sign up now.
Tuesday 9th November – The Political Economy of Climate Change: Who Pays for Climate Action?
This evening lecture will draw inspiration from Book IV of the Wealth of Nations. Chapter update author, economist and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glasgow, Sir Anton Muscatelli will be joined by Selwin Hart, Associate Secretary General of the UN (tbc), as well as other speakers to be confirmed. Together, they will connect the political economy of Smith to the negotiations taking place around them. The distribution between groups in society that concerned Smith and his contemporaries and followers might seem removed from the day-to-day operation of the negotiations, but ‘who pays?’ is now the central question underlying any COP. From the development paths available to poorer nations, to any compensation richer nations must offer them to compensate for following low-carbon development paths, to the question of how the carbon transition is financed through loans and grants, to the distribution of rights and responsibilities within countries, political economy is at the heart of climate. Sign up now.
Wednesday 10th November – Performance: The Life and Times of Adam Smith
The final day of our Adam Smith at the COP workstream, and our COP26 programme will see an innovative hybrid lecture-performance on The Life and Times of Adam Smith. We will offer a unique opportunity to hear from world leading experts on the personal and intellectual history of Adam Smith, while seeing key moments from that history brought to life by a group of performers. Sign up now.
Finance for Nature in Nature

Events at COP26 (Ross Priory, Loch Lomond)
Thursday 4th November – In partnership with Global Canopy, TNFD, Scottish Government and Nature4Climate
- Deforestation-free finance, Trase, Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund and NatureMetrics Hub: An exhibition and live consultancy
- TNFD in Practice – A presentation and round table discussion looking at how nature-related disclosures could work for financial institutions financing soy supply chains.
- Investing at scale: aligning value chains locally – with Nestlé UK
- Financing Nature Investment Hackathon – Success Factors for Blended Finance: Applying the OECD’s 5 Principles (in association with Riverwoods) – de-risking investment to deliver at scale.
Friday 5th November – Scottish Government and Scottish Forum on Natural Capital
- Interviews with: Willie Watt – Chair of SNIB & Julian Matthews – CEO & Founder of The Real Wild Estates Company/L’Oréal Nature Regeneration Fund, and with Jeremy Leggett – Highlands Rewilding/Bunloit
- Meeting Pace and Scale: Making Nature Markets work for all – Panel discussion led by UK Initiative for Financing Nature Recovery.
- Peatland Code and private finance seminar.
- Reflecting on progress in Scotland, and opportunities for UK and international collaboration.
- Workshop: Vacant & Derelict Land – an exciting, ambitious initiative, developed 2020/1 to create a selection of brownfield sites for investment
- Scottish Government presentation and Video Showcase on green financing initiatives from Scotland throughout the day.
OTHER EVENTS – Thursday 4th November – in association with Art of Forest
- Accelerating Ecosystem Restoration: Finance, Collaboration & Capacity Building – How to accelerate combined efforts through financing, carbon markets evolution and partnership.
Download our Finance for Nature in Nature Programme
- Contact events[at]globalethicalfinance.org to register your interest
Pre-COP26 Event (Virtual)
Monday 4th – Thursday 7th October – UNDP (Virtual)
- Nature for Life Hub – A programme of virtual events focusing on the transformations required to achieve the SDGs, and to bend the curve on biodiversity loss, climate change and nature-dependent livelihoods and wellbeing.
Faith in the SDGs

Pre-COP26 Event
28th September 2021 – UKIFC, UN & Islamic Development Bank (Virtual)
- Islamic Finance and SDGs Summit – a virtual global summit to explore the progress, challenges and opportunities presented to Islamic financial institutions in relation to the SDGs.
Events at COP:
Wednesday 3rd November – HM Treasury, Islamic Development Bank, State Bank of Pakistan and Ministry of Finance Indonesia and UN (Loch Lomond)
- Global Islamic Finance & UN SDGs Taskforce – A meeting, chaired by Economic Secretary to the Treasury John Glen, bringing global Islamic finance practitioners together to highlight the alignment between Islamic finance and the SDGs as well as explore the opportunities for Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states to develop a collective approach to sustainable finance and funding the SDGs and climate linked NDCs.
- Green Sukuk High-Level Working Group (HLWG) – Launch event for HLWG to position Green Sukuk as an innovative solution to attract private capital at scale to help developing and emerging economies.
- Islamic Social Finance – A round table, in partnership with the UN and Islamic Development Bank looking and the role of Islamic social financing mechanisms in supporting the SDGs and driving climate action
Tuesday 9th November – FaithInvest, Edinburgh Finance Declaration, UKIFC (Glasgow University)
- Faith in Finance Summit – A Summit, delivered in partnership with FaithInvest, will bring faith leaders and finance practitioners together to reflect on the collective power of faiths groups and showcase best practice examples that inspire faith investors to fund the transition to a low carbon economy.
- Click here to sign up now.
Net Zero Pensions

Pre-COP26 Activities
Thursday 19th August
- Scottish LGPS Engagement – Letters and draft Policy Positioning Paper sent to over 120 Board / Committee Members of 11 LGPS providers in Scotland
Thursday 26th August
- Media Release – Announcement of YouGov survey results measuring retail awareness and appetite of responsible investment in Scotland
- Late October
- Net Zero Roadmap Launch – Digital launch of the Net Zero Policy Positioning Paper
Pre-COP26 Events
Wednesday 15th September (Virtual)
- Scottish LGPS Net Zero Virtual Workshop – A private workshop that will consider what action LGPS providers in Scotland can take in time for COP26. The workshop will provide a safe and confidential space to raise any questions and discuss the issues covered in our draft paper.
Wednesday 29th September – Aberdeen Standard Investments and Lothian Pension Scheme (Virtual)
- GEFI Policy Positioning Paper Launch – A seminar exploring the new zero pension landscape. Register HERE.
Event at COP26
Tuesday 9th November (Glasgow University)
Tuesday 9th November, Kelvin gallery, University of Glasgow, 12:30-14:00: Net Zero Pension Summit
- Barry O’Dwyer (Chief Executive, Royal London), Faith Ward (Chief Responsible Investment Officer, Brunel Pension Partnership)
- David Russell, Head of Responsible Investment (Universities Superannuation Scheme)
- Eva Cairns, (Head of Climate Change Strategy, Abrdn)
- Tim Orton, (Managing Director, Investment Solutions, Aegon UK)Click here to sign up now.