The SUSTAIN Podcast

Ant sits down with GaiaSicura founder and CEO Will Butler to discuss how insurance can serve nature, the development of the natural capital markets, and nature as resilience infrastructure.

Check out GaiaSicura's report on the challenges and solutions to enable insurance for natural flood management here: https://gaiasicura.com/insights-research-and-reports

Ant is joined by ClimateWise Programme Director Felicity Alvey following the release of the insurance coalition's latest report: Redefining Systemic Risk Governance in the Insurance Industry

In it, Alvey calls for a coordinated approach to tackling emerging systemic risks caused by increasingly intense, frequent and interconnected climate events.

The Zurich-based Chief Sustainability Officer on her varied experiences in insurance and how they help inform her new role driving sustainable insurance innovation.

Ant is joined by Tam Hussey, Founder of Halo by Design, a consultancy focused on engaging customers and employees to encourage more sustainable behaviours. Tam shares a host of insights and tips to kick-start your engagement journey.

Links & resources

• Website:  www.halobydesign.com
• LinkedIn: (1) Tam Hussey | LinkedIn
• Email: [email protected]
• Ohme case study (National Grid): Ohme — Halo by Design
• Edie article re training: Sustainability training: Top tips for creating effective L&D initiatives which deliver results - edie
• Employee engagement best practises: (1) 7 key opportunities to harness when engaging and activating employees in the journey to meet your company’s sustainability targets. | LinkedIn
• Working with HR: Sustainability - HR’s secret weapon in the employee retention fight
• 2Hats: 2Hats — Halo by Design and/or https://www.edie.net/2-hatters-supporting-sustainability-leaders-who-have-another-full-time-role/?regwall=success&advance_login=success
• Green the screen (employee activation around digital waste) : Green The Screen — Halo by Design

Ant sits down with one of the insurance market's genuine climate innovators in Toby Behrmann, leader of AXA Climate's London operation and a pioneer in parametrics as a former senior leader at Global Parametrics.

Ant visits Professor Patrick Paul Walsh, Vice President & Director, SDG Academy, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and co-author of a new position paper which proposes 18 recommendations to catalyse insurance as driver of sustainable development and to elevate insurance within development frameworks.

Links:

Position paper - Insurance and sustainable development: partnering on risk, resilience, and transformation: https://edepositireland.ie/handle/2262/111474

Insurance and the SDGs open course: https://www.edx.org/learn/economics-finance/sdg-academy-an-introduction-to-insurance-and-the-sustainable-development-goals

Ant visits Linda Freiner, Chief Sustainability Officer of Zurich and one of the most experienced sustainability leaders in the industry. They discuss how to state the business case for sustainability as well as resilience, climate adaptation and Zurich's evolving sustainability strategy.

Check out Zurich's new report on this topic here: Climate risks: Strategies for building resilience in a more volatile world | Zurich Insurance

The episode we in sustainability need right now! Ant sits down with the ever pragmatic Olivia Brindle to discuss what insurance transition means in a hostile environment for climate action, and what learnings sustainability practitioners can take from Olivia's experiences in will-testing endurance events.

Veteran Howden executive Charlie Langdale, now CEO of Humanity Insured, explains this innovative new charity's mission and structure, and how he made his pivot into climate and social impact after spending three decades in insurance. https://humanityinsured.org

Backed by the insurance sector, Humanity Insured, empowers communities to build resilience in the face of climate change. By leveraging private and philanthropic capital, Humanity Insured unlocks the latest insurance innovations for the most climate vulnerable. Humanity Insured’s ambition is to protect 30 million people by 2030 and build $2.5 billion in insurance protection.

In its first year, Humanity Insured has funded ground-breaking initiatives, including drought insurance for displaced people and host communities in Malawi’s Dzaleka refugee settlement in partnership with UNHCR. It has also launched a first-of-its-kind drought insurance programme with the World Food Programme (WFP) to protect displaced people and smallholder farmers in Syria and partnered with Tearfund to support smallholder farmers across Ethiopia, Nepal, Malawi, and Pakistan—triggering an £80,000 payout in February 2025.