Living With 2°C Plus: Managing risk, value and insurance protection

Description

Insurance is at the forefront of discussion about impacts of climate. While climate changes the risk profile for physical assets (and non-physical), with the potential for loss and damage, insurance translates this risk into an upfront financial cost.

As global average temperatures rise, the scale and frequency of extreme events is increasing, we are seeing much greater loss and damage and a corresponding rise in insurance premiums. This is making some areas uninsurable.

The rate of change has raised questions about the future of the insurance industry; whether it can continue to function in an environment of growing risk and or whether parts of the business will need to be picked up by governments … but at what cost.

The astronomical costs associated with loss and damage raise further questions about climate adaptation. Does underinvestment in adaptation increase the cost of disaster response and does this in turn reduce our ability to invest in adaptation?

Panellists

Matthew R. Auer is Dean of the School of Public and International Affairs and Arch Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia. His research focuses on the politics of decision-making in the arenas of environmental protection, energy policy, and forest policy. His recent publications have focused on risk, insurance and insurability.

Sharanjit Paddam is an actuary and Principal at Finity, 2023 Actuary of the Year and 2022 Insurance Leader of the Year. He advises insurers, banks, investors, asset owners and governments on climate risk assessment, management, strategy and reporting. In 2022, 2023 and 2024 he was lead author for reports on Home Insurance Affordability for the Actuaries Institute.

Debra Tan heads China Water Risk (CWR), a non-profit that aims to “mainstream” water & climate risks into financial decision-making & corporate strategies. She built CWR from an idea into a ‘go-to’ resource in the global climate water risk conversation. CWR was part of China’s Environmental Risk Analysis Task Force as well as a founding member of Hong Kong’s Green Finance Association.

Heidi Turner, CEO Townsville Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber’s federal budget submission, Insurance: The Market Failure of an Essential Service in Northern Australia is backed by 20 Chambers of Commerce across Northern Australia, representing thousands of businesses struggling with unaffordable or unavailable insurance. Heidi is a passionate advocate for North Queensland and a connector of businesses.

John Marinopoulos is an advisor to governments and the private sector on resilient infrastructure, disaster risk reduction, cities and precincts to understand and realise the value and benefits from planning and delivery of infrastructure. He has more than 30 years of experience in delivering strategic analyses and assessments. John was the co-program lead for the Enabling Resilience Investment Framework and one of the driving forces behind its creation, development and implementation.

Greg Bloom, Miami-Dade Insurance Strategy Forum. Mr Bloom is a community organizer, cooperative developer, and agent of the commons. He founded and led the Open Referral Initiative, which is promoting open access to information about the health, human, and social services available to people in need. He also provides strategic support for public health institutions such as the Gravity Project. He is a visiting scholar in the Data and Information Governance program at Indiana University’s Ostrom Workshop on the Commons.