This is the second of four episodes we did in partnership with Finance Montreal, recording panelists at their Sustainable Finance Summit.

In this episode, Eric Usher, head of the UN Environmental Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), discusses why banks and insurers continue to make progress on their climate commitments despite recent headlines. He explores the global pace of the electric-vehicle transition, the business case for sustainable finance and why leading banks can benefit from lower funding costs.

You’ll also hear from Brian Kernohan, chief sustainability officer at Manulife Investment Management, on why social issues, including housing affordability, income inequality and financial inclusion, deserve greater attention alongside carbon and nature. He also discusses the Taskforce on Inequality and Social-related Financial Disclosures (TISFD) and its potential to make social impacts more measurable for investors.

Enjoy!!

Host: Mike Disabato

Guests: Eric Usher, UNEP FI; Brian Kernohan, Manulife IM

Episode Reading:
UN Environmental Programme Finance Initiative

Taskforce on Inequality and Social-related Financial Disclosures | TISFD Global Initiative

This is the first of four episodes we did in partnership with Finance Montreal, recording panellists at their Sustainable Finance Summit.

Today you'll hear from Dr. Sarah Kapnick, the ex-chief scientist of NOAA and how global head of climate advisory at JPMorgan, talking about the weirdening of our natural world is impact all our resources - from drought and the Colorado River to the soil health and how fertilizer shocks are hitting your food supply. And John E. Morton Head of Nature Finance and Investment at the World Wildlife Fund discussing why half of global GDP depends on nature becoming as important as climate in the eyes of investors.

Enjoy!

Episode Reading:

Climate Intuition: Food security: The fates of farming and food in a warming world

Climate Intuition: Food security under pressure: Iran conflict disruptions and a brewing El Niño

Integrating nature into financial decision-making

Guests:

Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

Guest: Dr. Sarah Kapnick, JPMorgan & John E. Morton, World Wildlife Fund

When conflict disrupted gas exports through the Strait of Hormuz earlier this year, attention focused on gas prices and shipping lanes. But the shock travelled further — quietly rippling through fertilizer markets, where some producers were hit far harder than others, revealing how location-based risk can emerge deep within a supply chain.

Host: Gabriela de la Serna, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

Guest: Cole Martin, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

After the SEC stepped back from shareholder proposal oversight, courts stepped in. We take a look at early signals from this year’s proxy season and whether we're seeing a structural shift in shareholder rights.

Host: Bentley Kaplan, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

Guest: Jonathan Ponder, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

On February 28, the Strait of Hormuz shut down, stranding 20% of the world's crude exports and 20% of global LNG capacity. Energy crises usually send the world running back to coal; but this time, coal generation outside China actually fell, while wind, solar, and batteries picked up the slack. Host Mike Disabato talks with MSCI's Chris Cote about whether a war in the Middle East just accelerated the end of fossil fuels, which industries can pivot now, and why countries burned twice by energy dependence may never go back.

Episode reading: The Opportunity in Energy Disruption — Batteries Included

Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

Guest: Chris Cote, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

For years, biodiversity risk has been a blind spot for investors — difficult to measure and even harder to link to financial performance. But that’s starting to change. In this episode, we explore how more granular, location-based data is helping investors see where companies are truly exposed to nature-related risks.

Host: Gabriela da la Serna, MSCI Research & Development

Guest: Bettina Meyer, MSCI Research & Development

As climate risk accelerates, insurers face a core challenge — pricing a future that no longer resembles the past. While some are adopting forward-looking models, much of the industry still reacts after losses occur, raising questions about resilience across the financial system.

Guests: David Carlin, D.A. Carlin & Company; Pam Palena, MSCI Research & Development

Host: Bentley Kaplan, MSCI Research & Development

Carbon footprints tell you where a fund has been. But do they tell you how it’s positioned for the road ahead?

In this episode, we unpack new research from Positioning Portfolios for the Energy Transition (link to paper) analyzing more than 37,000 funds representing USD 50 trillion in assets. The research finds that funds with stronger energy transition positioning were associated with higher historical returns — and stronger links to decarbonization outcomes.

We explore the distinction between transition pressure (risk exposure) and transition readiness (strategic preparedness), why managing transition risk is different from achieving temperature alignment, and how investors can balance financial performance with climate objectives.

If you think climate analysis begins and ends with carbon intensity, this conversation may change your perspective.

Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI Sustainability & Climate

Guest: Kishan Gangadia, MSCI Sustainability & Climate