Nina Pindham: Reflections from My Time at NYC Climate Week 2024

11 Oct 2024

Cornerstone Climate

It’s been a whirlwind week at NYC Climate Week 2024, with over 900 events across the entire city, from 6am breakfast briefings to 2am rooftop cocktails. And everything in between. The scale, range and intensity of the discussions were a powerful reminder of the urgency of our global climate crisis and how profoundly the challenge affects every sector of the economy and all members of society. After almost fifteen years of experience attending the UNFCCC’s Conference of the Parties (not every year, mind you!), this was my first NYC Climate Week. While both are almost entirely sleepless affairs, the contrast could not be more striking – in its particularly American way, the enthusiasm, activity and ambition of the people I met at NYC Climate Week have entirely reinforced my feeling that a corner has turned and it is the private sector actors who have grasped the need to take the impacts of the climate crisis on board, and do something about it. COPs have always disappointed in some way, most recently usually due to blocking tactics by Middle Eastern petrostates such as Saudi Arabia. NYC Climate Week was surprising in how much it exceeded expectations by illustrating the positive efforts that are taking place.

Day 1: New York City Bar Here I spoke on a panel at the invitation of the American Bar Association on the implications of the climate crisis for the legal sector. In one of the most elegant buildings in New York, the full room then entered into a discussion that went long into the night. We discussed how students choose law firms to work for, the varying legal obligations on lawyers to take or powers to refuse clients, what climate-conscious legal advice means and how to frame it, and most interestingly for us litigators, direct advice from a judge on how judges view certain legal approaches to and arguments concerning the climate crisis.

Day 2: The Howden Resilience Laboratory Launch I attended the launch of the Howden Resilience Laboratory in the very swich Times Square Microsoft offices. This is a collaboration between Howden and Microsoft, highlighting the threat of physical climate risk to global economic stability. One of the key takeaways was the potential for a liquidity crisis as properties become uninsurable due to climate impacts. It was clear to me that we are not valuing property correctly in the face of these risks, and there’s an urgent need for a common framework to assess them. This event was the start of that process, as the Laboratory will be able to measure and predict in detail the precise impacts of the climate crisis on specific infrastructure, for example, in a specific location along a specified time frame. Even as a non-insurance specialist, the implications were crystal clear—the sector has heard the wake-up call to get serious about resilience and risk management, and are using the immense capabilities of big tech, AI, and huge amounts of data to tackle it.

Day 3: Biodiversity and Business at Hudson Yards Day three took me to Hudson Yards, where I attended a biodiversity panel that featured representatives from The Nature Conservancy, Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and International Paper. I was struck by the comment from the International Paper team: “We produce a low-emotion product from a high-emotion resource.” The panel showcased how the financial world is starting to take biodiversity seriously and tying it into deals, loans, and schemes. Goldman Sachs, in an unexpected but welcome recognition of our efforts here, promoted England’s new Biodiversity Net Gain regime, evidence if any more was needed that in this respect at least England is leading an example the world is looking to follow.

Day 4: Pro-Climate Litigation Heroes in Brazil The most humbling and inspiring moment of the week came during an event at the Sabin Centre, where I met some of the bravest lawyers I’ve ever encountered. Environmental lawyers are risking their lives—and being directly sued—for pursuing pro-climate litigation in Brazil. It was a stark contrast to the relative safety and freedom we enjoy practicing law in the UK. The courage and determination of these lawyers serves as a powerful reminder of the stakes involved for lawyers where state protection of lawyers advancing controversial causes is lacking.

Looking Back: A Transformative Experience Reflecting on my time at NYC Climate Week, I’m inspired by the incredible people and initiatives leading the way. From the resilience needed to confront physical climate risks to the brave legal battles being fought in hostile environments, it’s clear that the road ahead will be complex and difficult. But it’s equally clear that there are people out there who are willing to push boundaries and take risks for the future of our planet.

As I head home, I carry with me a renewed sense of hope for change and the responsibility to keep pushing for meaningful change, especially on behalf of those in jurisdictions who cannot. Every conversation, every idea, and every step brings us closer to a more sustainable future. Let’s keep going.