Contributor(s): Naïm Abou-Jaoudé, Sharan Burrow, Rathin Roy, Dr Rhian-Mari Thomas | How can we combine recovery from COVID-19 with the shift to an inclusive and sustainable global economy?

Leading figures in government, business and civil society have pledged to “build back better”. In the run-up to the COP26 climate summit in November 2021, there’s a clear need for both greater ambition and greater practicality in mobilising the public and private finance that will be needed for a green and just recovery.

Meet our speakers and chair

Naïm Abou-Jaoudé is the Chief Executive Officer of Candriam, a $140bn global multi-specialist asset manager and a recognized leader in Sustainable Investing. He is also the Chairman of New York Life Investments International, in charge of the global development for New York Life Investments, a $560bn asset manager.

Sharan Burrow (@SharanBurrow) is General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, representing 200 million workers in 163 countries and territories with 332 national affiliates. Previously President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) from 2000 – 2010, Sharan is a passionate advocate and campaigner for social justice, women’s rights, the environment and labour law reforms, and has led union negotiations on major economic reforms and labour rights campaigns in her home country of Australia and globally.

Rathin Roy (@EmergingRoy) is Managing Director (Research and Policy) at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). His policy interests and research has mainly focused on fiscal and macroeconomic issues pertinent to human development in developing and emerging economies.

Rhian-Mari Thomas (@RhianMariThomas) is CEO of the Green Finance Institute, backed by UK Government and City of London Corporation. Rhian spent 20 years in banking and was awarded an OBE for services to green banking. She is an Emeritus Member of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and co-chair of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD). She is a member of numerous advisory groups and boards across UK Government.

Nick Robins (@NVJRobins1) is Professor in Practice for Sustainable Finance at the Grantham Research Institute at LSE. The focus of his work is on how to mobilise finance for a just transition, the role of central banks and regulators in achieving sustainable development and how the financial system can support the restoration of nature.

More about this event

This event is part of the LSE Festival: Shaping the Post-COVID World running from Monday 1 to Saturday 6 March 2021, with a series of events exploring the direction the world could and should be taking after the crisis and how social science research can shape it.

The Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment (@GRI_LSE) was established by the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2008 to create a world-leading centre for policy-relevant research and training on climate change and the environment, bringing together international expertise on economics, finance, geography, the environment, international development and political economy.