Day 1 - Policy developments + implications for activities on the ground

Welcome remarks

Thomas Vellacott, CEO, WWF Switzerland & Gold Standard Board of Directors, launched the Gold Standard 2016: Grow To Zero event with an inaugural keynote address, highlighting the integral role standardization and verification frameworks will play in bringing the planet back on a sustainable trajectory. View>>

KEYNOTE: “Twin Tracks” – The convergence of climate & SDG agendas

Sven Harmeling, Climate Change Advocacy Coordinator, CARE International, presented the finding of the Twin Tracks report (3rd edition) and emphasized the interlinked nature of climate change and sustainable development within the context of the Paris Agreement. Download>>

Why standards matter

The role of standards in climate + development and where they are going
Patrick Mallet, Director of Innovations, ISEAL, highlighted the growing importance of sustainability standards for businesses in providing scalable solutions and demonstrating their impacts. Download>>

PANEL: Results-based finance for greater impact

Need for results-based finance to ensure impacts
Peter George, Director, Enterprise Development & Investment, Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, demonstrated the economic, social and health benefits of financing clean cookstove projects, and the core strategies that may be implemented to guarantee their continued success. Download>>

How governments can increase their impact in + development
Nathalie Roth, Luxembourg Ministry for Sustainable Development and Infrastructure, spelled out Luxembourg's commitment to sustainable development in the context of the Paris Agreement, which activated an unprecedented impetus for government involvement in climate challenges. Download>>

Results-based finance on the ground: Lessons for sustainable development
Martin Hiller, Director General, REEEP, addressed the inherent challenges associated with sustainable development, and the tools needed on the ground to guarantee effective monitoring and evaluation. Download>>

PANEL: Driving quality in future carbon markets

Perspectives from the private sector and challenges + opportunities post Paris
Jochen Gassner, Co-chair, International Carbon Reduction & Offset Alliance (ICROA), provided perspectives from the private sector in regards to the voluntary carbon market as it stands today, and the challenges and opportunities signalled by the UNFCCC Paris Agreement. Download>>

Sustainable pricing for emissions reductions: Insights from Fairtrade Climate Standard
Andreas Kratz, Director Standards & Pricing, Fairtrade International, highlighted the Fairtrade’s Carbon Credit’s advantages in engaging stakeholders to make a lasting impact on rural communities and climate security challenges. Download>>

Paris Agreement: The Implications of Article 6
Christof Arens, Energy, Transport and Climate Policy Research Group, Wuppertal Institute, presented the findings of the Carbon Mechanisms Review (January, 2016) and outlined the implications of Article 6 of the UNFCCC Paris Agreement as a “cooperative approach” toward net mitigation in the voluntary and compliance carbon markets. Download>>

The future of the CDM sustainable development tool
Karen Holm Olsen, Senior Researcher, UNDEP DTU, compared the CDM SD tool with other mechanisms and stakeholder needs. Download>>

Insights into Bonn Climate Change Conference Negotiations
Gajanana Hedge, Team Lead, Sustainable Development Mechanisms (SDM) programme, UNFCCC, spoke to the challenges and opportunities of the Bonn conferences and their impacts on the final outcome of the Paris Agreement. 

Redefining voluntary offsetting and Science Based Targets
Alberto Carrillo, Head of Climate Business Engagement, WWF International, elucidated the key elements of the “new climate framework”, which harnesses the public and private sector and uses scientific metrics to drive action and shape ambition. Download>>

PANEL: Innovative funding for climate + SDGs

Jeroen Blüm, Managing Director, Bix Capital, described the capital model and theory of change that underpin Bix Capital’s Social Impact Fund. Download>>

Stephen Gabauer, Golf Environment Organization, Golf’s Climate Fund, announced the steps that will be taken by the Golf Climate Fund to integrate sustainability and science-based targets into the core of the sport. Download>>

Barry Hammond, Finance Director, Nexus for Development, described the Nexus mission to bridge the “pioneer gap” by bringing expertise and resources to under-funded social enterprises. Download>>

Overview and progress of Gold Standard 3.0

Measuring beyond Carbon Impacts
Harry Clemens, Programme Officer Carbon Finance & Green Society, Hivos International, described the innovative scientific methods used to demonstrate the multi-pronged impacts of biogas cookstove projects, which extend far beyond carbon mitigation. Download>>

The Nexus: The need for holistic measurement
Brendan Smith, Technical Director, Water and Agriculture, Gold Standard, demonstrated how Gold Standard 3.0 enables project developers to address multiple SDGs in a way that acknowledges the inextricable links between land, water and food security. Download>>

Gold Standard 3.0 in Cities
Abhishek Goyal, Senior Technical Director, Gold Standard, & Patrick Bürgi, Co-founder/Director, Public Sector, South Pole Group, unveiled a new standardisation framework that allows certification of city landscapes. Download>>

Announcement of the first partners for Gold Standard 3.0 
Pieter van Midwoud, Director of Partnerships and Business Development at Gold Standard announced the Government of Luxembourg, Bix Capital, World Bank and Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves are the first to commit to Gold Standard 3.0, helping to us to refine and launch the standard, develop its first methodologies and promote its uptake worldwide. Read more>>

Better information for better decision-making

Announcement of Gold Standard Supply Report Q1 2016
Gold Standard launched its new quarterly report that provides up-to-date data on its issuances and retirements as well as features to help build clarity around the complexities of the market, especially in regards to pricing. Download>>

Co-benefits at the intersection of forest carbon and sustainable development
Allie Goldstein, Senior Associate, Ecosystem Marketplace, summarized the market demand for forest carbon offsets from their latest report, Not So Niche (March 2016), and the wide range of impacts they engender. Download>>

Day 2 - Expectations + opportunities in climate + development (for business)

KEYNOTE: What we need to accomplish

Matt Spannagle, Consultant in Climate Change and Development, communicated the enormous challenges facing our global climate, and the paradigm shift in sustainable thinking required to catalyse the solutions. Download>>

PANEL: Business trends in sustainability

Pressure from investors
Amandine Favier, Senior Advisor Sustainable Finance, WWF Switzerland, explored the changing investor trends in the renewable energy and sustainability sector amidst increasing regulatory pressures and disclosure of climate externalities. Download>>

How reporting and transparency trends shape corporate expectations
Barbara Dubach, Founder & Managing Director, Engageability, surveyed the trends in sustainability reporting in the private sector and the most effective means for encouraging transparency moving forward. Download>>

Valuing social & natural capital, managing supply chain risk, and moving along a sustainability journey
Samuel Vionnet, Sustainability Expert & Founder, Valuing Nature, offered insight into how externalities are accounted for in the supply chains of corporate, and the challenges associated with evaluating their impacts. Download>>

PANEL: Expectations and opportunities

How to create business value beyond environmental reporting
Rainer Zah, Managing Director, Quantis, demonstrated how companies can use the power of metrics to create value and measure potential impacts beyond their carbon footprint. Download>>

Science Based Targets and RE100
Alberto Carrillo, Head of Climate Business Engagement, WWF International, provided a new approach to carbon offsetting. By setting emission reductions based on science, using offsetting as a ‘carbon finance’ mechanism and including additionality on both the supply and demand side, companies will help close both the emissions and the finance gap. Download>>

Assessing low-Carbon Transition (ACT)
Pedro Faria, Technical Director, Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), demonstrated how a holistic assessment of companies’ carbon footprint allows them to close them to evaluate their value chain and close the “commitment gap”. Download>>

TOOLS: Climate + development with Gold Standard 3.0

Pieter van Midwoud, Director of Partnership and Business Development, Gold Standard, explicated the overall strategy of Gold Standard 3.0 as a mechanism for investing into the transition of a low carbon economy. Download>>

Sarah Leugers, Marketing Director, Gold Standard, illustrated how companies can use the language of sustainability to enhance their brand value and advertising by communicating their commitment to investing in a sustainable future. Download>>

PANEL: Gaining brand value from climate action + sustainability

Trevor Solomon, Global PSRA Manager, AkzoNobel, shared AkzoNobel’s leadership role in integrating sustainability into the heart of their business by doing more with less in their value chain which spans the globe and extends across multiple sectors. Download>>

Key insights:

• AkzoNobel with The FReMCo Group created the first award-winning Gold Standard methodology for commercial shipping
• The project has delivered it’s first credits verifying 126,785 tonnes of avoided CO2 emissions from 16 individual vessels
• One product from a low energy portion of AkzoNobel offsets the whole of AkzoNobel by almost twice

Daniela Spiessmann, GoGreen Senior Expert, Deutsche Post DHL Group, presented DHL’s “GoGreen” initiative to incorporate climate mitigation and sustainable development into their core business model and day-to-day operations. Download>>

Key insights:

• DHL is considering going for voluntary Gold Standard exclusively rather than using Gold Standard CERs due to 2012 trading limit.
• Custom engineered electric vehicle are operating in DHL's delivery chain.

Rachel Barré, Carbon Balanced Program Manager, L’Oréal, unveiled the extensive efforts undertaken by L’Oréal to dramatically reduce carbon emissions in its supply chains, and the ambitious sustainability strategies it plans to integrate by 2020. Download>>

Key insights:

• L’Oréal has achieved a 50% reduction in GHG emissions from production in absolute terms compared to 2005.
• By 2020, L’Oréal seeks to reduce CO2 emissions from plants and distribution centers by 60% in absolute terms compared to 2005.

Geza Toth, CSR Project Developer, Ferrero highlighted population trends and the pressures they will exert on land, food, and water security, and how Ferrero’s sustainability approach represents an integral model in securing a brighter long-term future. Download>>

Key Insights

• White sugar, fats, milk and derivatives, cocoa beans, hazelnuts and wheat account for 90% of consumption provided by Ferrero's supply chain. 
• Consequently, Ferrero identified Gold Standard 3.0 as an opportunity to improve supply chains through a holistic approach

Anu Chaudhary, Head of Corporate Sustainability, Tata Technologies, identified the five “mega-trends” associated with climate change, and how Tata Group is incorporating sustainability into their core business strategy to mitigate their effects. Download>>

Key insights:

• For issues like water and pollution, gaze will shift from governments to companies
• COP21 saw several investors announcing pulling out of carbon-intensive investments e.g. fossil fuel-based industries
• As climate change trends accelerate, companies will need to integrate sustainability into their core business models in order to remain competitive