Sean Kidney

Sean  Kidney is the chief executive officer of the Climate Bonds Initiative, an international NGO working to mobilize global capital for climate action. Projects include a green bond definitions and certification scheme with $34 trillion of assets represented on its board and some 200 organizations involved in its development and governance; working with the central bank of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on how to grow green bonds; and supporting market development programs in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Nigeria, and East Africa.

Global Perspective

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed called for accelerated action as she addressed the fourth Southeast Asia Development Symposium held on 30 March. She urged Southeast Asian countries to go "further and farther" together in advancing their net-zero ambitions and stressed the need for international cooperation to speed the decarbonization of high-emitting sectors.

Amina Mohammed

Before becoming the United Nations (UN) deputy secretary-general in early 2017, Amina J. Mohammed was the Minister of Environment of Nigeria. Prior to this, she supported the UN Secretary-General as special adviser on post-2015 development planning, where she was instrumental in bringing about the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Opening Keynote

Indonesia Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, in her keynote address at the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) fourth Southeast Asia Development Symposium (SEADS), said ASEAN, being the world’s fastest-growing economic region, will require more energy to sustain growth, but this need not result in more C02 emissions. She spoke of how ASEAN is committed to continually growing but is also determined to achieve its net-zero ambition by 2060 or earlier. She also detailed the initiatives Indonesia has taken to decarbonize.