Launched at the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development and developed by the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), the Principles for Sustainable Insurance serve as a global framework for the insurance industry to address environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities. Endorsed by the UN Secretary-General, the Principles have led to the largest collaborative initiative between the UN and the insurance industry—the PSI Initiative. To date, 70 organisations have adopted the Principles, including insurers representing approximately 15% of world premium volume and USD 8 trillion in assets under management.
A PSI market event features examples of how insurers are implementing the Principles and ongoing collaborative activities of the PSI Initiative, shares good sustainable insurance practices, discusses emerging themes and new ideas, and promotes work by other organisations that are in line with the aims of the Principles. The PSI Geneva market event will include a consultation with the insurance industry and its stakeholders to understand the links between insurance regulation and sustainable development, as part of a global consultation by the PSI Initiative and UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System.
Elements for debate:
- What is the role of natural ecosystems in disaster risk reduction and how can this be embedded in core insurance operations and relevant public policies?
- Amid rapid environmental change, how can insurers better tackle health and environmental risks?
- How are insurance underwriters managing environmental, social and governance issues in engineering insurance, particularly for large-scale infrastructure projects?
- What is the state of the green bonds market and why is this an attractive asset class for insurance company investments?
- How could insurance industry policy and regulation better support sustainable development?