South Downs National Park Green Finance Summit
‘Pioneering a Green Future’
Making Private Finance Work for Nature and Landowners
Thurs, 23 May 2024
This exciting summit brought together key policy makers, practitioners, landowners, agents and those seeking to invest in green finance or offset, to showcase best practice and promote discussion on how unlocking green finance to fund nature’s recovery can deliver bigger, better, more joined up, landscape-led nature recovery.
In particular, how the National Park and other protected landscapes can play a key role as conveners and enablers, working with landowners and developers to deliver successful practical implementation at scale.
Watch the summit sessions below.
Session 1: The Strategic Imperative
This session looked at the challenges of the biodiversity and climate crises and in meeting our collective commitments to 30by30 and Net Zero, the crucial role protected landscapes have to play in delivering on these targets and the role private finance has to play.
Speakers included:
- SDNPA Chief Executive Tim Slaney on the role of National Parks and protected landscapes in delivering for nature and climate.
- Professor David Hill CBE, Chairman and founder of the Environment Bank, speaking on the role of environmental markets in tackling biodiversity loss and climate change.
- Helen Avery, Director of Nature Programmes and GFI Hive
Session 2: Nature Market Principles – Getting the Ethics Right
This session included an introduction to the Nature Market Principles followed by a panel discussion by experts from the voluntary, public and private sectors; articulating the importance of regulation and strong ethics when adopting approaches to unlock private finance to fund nature’s recovery.
Speakers included:
- Alicia Gibson, Finance Earth. Joining Alicia on the panel will be:
- Dr Rob Stoneman, Director Landscape Recovery, The Wildlife Trusts
- Matthew Woodcock, MBE, Partnerships & Expertise Manager South East, Forestry Commission
- Olly Breen, Sustainability & Responsible Banking Senior Manager, Santander
Session 3: Delivering Nature Recovery Through Green Finance in the SDNP and Wider Protected Landscapes
This session showcased how green finance is supporting delivery of nature recovery in the South Downs National Park and across the protected landscape family, on privately owned land, through partnership working with local farmers and landowners.
Speakers included:
- Ben Taylor, Landowner, Iford Estate
- Nick Heasman, Countryside & Policy Manager, SDNPA
- Naomi Conway, Director, National Park Partnerships
Session 4: Harnessing Green Finance for Nature Recovery: Where to Start
This session focused on sharing expertise and experiences from landowners, land managers and operators currently delivering premium nature recovery through habitat banking in the region through a variety of approaches. This session heard from a panel of experts from across the field sharing their methods.
Panellists included:
- Debbie Tan MBE, Chief Executive, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust
- James Baird, landowner and partner in Weald to waves project
- Michael Sander, Habitat Vault
- Colin Smart, Environmental Farmers Group
- Lorenzo Curci, Co-Founder, Earthly
- Mark Alden, Nature Based Solutions Manager, SDNPA