Michael Perkins

Investing in Sustainable Development

John McArthur, Reyaz Ahmad, Christopher Ailman, Aimée Christensen, David Rae, Michael Perkins, Chris

Leading institutional investors and development finance experts convened to argue that shifting from moral to economic imperatives is essential for mobilizing the estimated $5 to $7 trillion annually needed to fund global sustainable development. Panelists including Christopher Ailman, David Ray, and representatives from CalSTRS and the IFC discussed specific strategies such as carbon pricing, blended capital, and SASB-standardized metrics to navigate regulatory uncertainty and scale infrastructure in energy, transport, and agriculture. The consensus emphasized that achieving these goals requires integrating sustainability into core business models rather than treating it as corporate social responsibility, ultimately aiming to stabilize long-term capital flows through predictable policy frameworks and transparent risk management.