Climate change poses financial risks, but the solutions can provide economic opportunities. That has some of the world’s largest financial institutions – such as the Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citi – seeing green. Recently, Citi committed 100 billion dollars in financing for projects that reduce greenhouse gases or help communities adapt to climate change.

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Mindy Lubber is the CEO of CERES, a nonprofit group advising Citi on the initiative.

Lubber: “What Citi said in a very bold $100 billion dollar announcement is that there’s money to be made from investing in a green energy future.”

Over the next decade, Citi plans to put the earmarked funds toward renewable energy – especially solar – as well as green housing, sustainable transportation, and energy efficiency. Importantly, it’s a focus that Lubber says is driven by the bottom line, not a political agenda.

Lubber: “They’re here to make money. They’ve got an obligation to their shareholders to make money, and from their perspective, a lot of it.”

Lubber says Citi’s ambitious goal is likely to motivate other banks to make big investments in climate change solutions – providing the money to build a more sustainable world.

Reporting credit: ChavoBart Digital Media.
Photo: Copyright protected.

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Bud Ward was editor of Yale Climate Connections from 2007-2022. He started his environmental journalism career in 1974. He later served as assistant director of the U.S. Congress's National Commission...