Delegates and speakers can arrive at the venue at any time during this four-hour window to register and collect their badges and conference materials in advance. Please note that during this time, the conference and exhibition will not be open. However, pre-registration will allow you to gain immediate access to the exhibition hall and lunch as they open at 12:00.

This opening plenary session will tackle a key challenge for markets around the world that deeply impacts responsible investors: navigating the transition to net zero in a just and orderly way, with a focus on carbon-intensive and emerging economies.

Looking back to PRI in Person Tokyo in 2023, and a year of expanding debates between government, market participants and civil society, the session speakers will discuss what are the best approaches to transition entire economies to net zero, what are the trade-offs to tackle, and what is the role for policy intervention to ensure it is just, inclusive and ambitious.

The session will focus on political commitment and action to enable the economic transition. It will include a debate for and against intervention in markets as the best way to transition economies, and key questions such as, can markets alone achieve a just transition? What policies are inhibiting or supporting investment in a just transition? How can policymakers reinforce investor policy engagement for a whole-of-government, ambitious policy reform?

Michael Cohen, Chief Investment Operating Officer/Chief of Staff, CalPERS
Carine de Boissezon, Chief Impact Officer, EDF (remote speaker)
The Hon. Senator Rosa Galvez, Senate of Canada
Catherine McKenna, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Climate and Nature Solutions, Chair, UN Secretary-General’s High-level Expert Group on Net-Zero Commitments
Sbu Ngwane, Group Chief Strategy and Sustainability Officer, Old Mutual (remote speaker)
Moderator: Simon Mundy, Moral Money Editor, Financial Times

Despite growing momentum in sustainable finance, significant barriers remain that hinder the full adoption of responsible investment practices. This session will address challenges such as regulatory uncertainty, market short-termism, and organizational resistance to change. Additionally, we will examine the politicization of ESG, which has fuelled misunderstandings and contributed to a growing anti-ESG pushback. Investment leaders will share insights on overcoming these barriers and advancing responsible investment for long-term value creation.

Kirsty Jenkinson, Investment Director, California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS)
Tiffany R. Reeves, Partner, Faegre Drinker
Anna Shelley, CIO, AMP Invesments
Barbara Zvan, President and Chief Executive Officer, University Pension Plan (UPP)
Moderator: Prof. Witold Henisz, Vice Dean and Faculty Director - ESG Initiative, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

Coaches will depart from the MTCC to transport PRI in Person attendees to the ROM from 18:00. Starting at 20:30, coaches will leave the ROM regularly to return guests to the MTCC.