On-demand conference - Turning aspirations into reality: Go green, be ethical and protect your company

Following COP26 and the signing of the Glasgow Climate Pact, Clyde & Co and Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), hosted a half-day virtual conference on climate change on Wednesday 23 March 2022. The conference is now available to view on-demand.

As part of a decarbonised future, businesses are uniquely placed to work with governments, consumers and other stakeholders to push for transformational change across all industries. But they have a lot to lose – almost $1 trillion according to the UN. It is therefore fundamentally important that businesses, including finance institutions and law firms, work with government and civil society stakeholders to ensure everyone is on board with climate change.

The virtual conference can now be viewed on demand. Please click the session you would like to watch, on demand:

Opening keynote

Prof Penny Green FAcSS, Queen Mary University of London; Milena Szuniewicz-Wenzel and Nigel Brook, Clyde & Co; Prof Jorge Vinuales, University of Cambridge

Watch the opening keynote speech

Session 1: Relevance of environmental and human rights issues to businesses

Prof Malgosia Fitzmaurice, Queen Mary University of London; Tessa Khan, Uplift; Dr Ludovica Chiussi Curzi, University of Bologna; Catherine Higham, LSE

Chaired by Prof Malgosia Fitzmaurice, session 1 considered the regulation of environmental and human rights issues by businesses. Tessa Khan discusses why environmental and human rights concerns are relevant to businesses in a broader sense in particular where various risks are involved, Dr Ludovica Chiussi Curzi highlights the major challenges in navigating the standards we have, how to put them into practice and the possibility of implementing treaty regulations in these areas, and Catherine Higham provides details on the domestic legislative landscape and the role that climate change litigation has played in spurring the move from soft law to hard law.

Watch session 1

Session 2: Change in investment climate in light of change in government policies and regulations

Richard Power, Clyde & Co; Dr Angelos Dimopoulos, Queen Mary University of London; Duncan Grierson, Clim8 Invest; Grant Douglas, ScottishPower Renewables

Chaired by Richard Power, Session 2 considered whether changing laws and regulations has led to a change in investment behaviour to channel funds into green energy and other decarbonising projects. Dr Angelos Dimopoulos considered the impact of liberalising international trade, Duncan Grierson gave a fascinating insight from an ethical investor’s point of view, and Grant Douglas explained how planning renewable projects has been affected by the green agenda.

Watch session 2

Session 3: Environment related issues in international arbitration

Ben Knowles, Clyde & Co; Wendy Miles QC, Twenty Essex; Stuart Bruce, KPMG; Dr Tibisay Morgandi, Queen Mary University of London

Chaired by Ben Knowles, Session 3 considers issues commonly seen in environmental claims in international arbitration. Wendy Miles QC explains how climate and environmental claims fit into the legal framework, Stuart Bruce looks at these claims in the context of investment arbitration and Tibisay Morgandi analyses some of the recent court cases that have been determined by the courts of England and Wales. Climate change disclosures and sustainability reports, and their legal impact, were topics that all our panels addressed.

Watch session 3

Closing remarks

Prof Stavros Brekoulakis, Queen Mary University of London; Anna Triponel, Triponel Consulting

Watch the closing remarks