30 June 2025 - We wrap up our events from the week where everything from retrofitting and the new economic narrative to scaling up innovation and the Industrial Strategy were discussed.
London Climate Action Week (LCAW) is one of the world’s largest independent climate events and, last week, it brought together business leaders, investors, startups, policymakers, academics and civil society in a week-long series of events, roundtables and panels to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis.
BGA Business Leaders’ Summit 2025: Business Backs Climate Action
The UK Corporate Leaders Group (CLG UK) is the lead secretariat of the UK Business Group Alliance for Net Zero (BGA) and was delighted to welcome Secretary of State, Ed Miliband, and Minister Sarah Jones to its annual summit.
Co-hosted by the Aldersgate Group and supported by The Climate Pledge, the Summit drew senior business leaders to an afternoon of panels, roundtables and keynote speeches from the two ministers. Taking place on Tuesday 23 June, the day after the launch of the Industrial Strategy, more than 100 people from business, NGOs, government and civil society gathered in the heart of Westminster to send a clear message that business backs climate action.
Miliband delivered the closing remarks and spoke passionately on the government’s mission to achieve net zero, the need for business to be vocal in their sustainability efforts; the importance of getting the narrative right, and thanked the CLG UK and the businesses in attendance for their work.
“If you have any doubts about our mission, look at last week’s Spending Review. Our investment in carbon capture, in the warm homes plan, in Great British Energy, in the hydrogen economy. We see government investment as crowding in, not crowding out, privates. And it is that partnership which is so important.
“The people who are against this kind of action want to reinforce their narrative that somehow there is a backlash, because they know that confidence is reinforcing and doubt is corrosive.
“Pessimism is a luxury. All of the people in this room, including me, can have an effect on whether we get energy security or not. There are lots in the people in the world and in Britain who don’t have that, who can’t have that effect. And we’ve got a responsibility to be hopeful and to be determined and to recognise that we’ve come a long way. Yes, there are challenges and, yes, we’ve got a long way still to go, but we can absolutely do it.
“We can do it because the economics are on our side. And that is a very different world to where we were 10/15 years ago. The biggest transformation we’ve seen is the fall in the price of renewables. And the way in which it’s so clear that this is the economic opportunity of the 21st century.”
Minister Sarah Jones opened the Summit saying, “The Industrial Strategy is looking 10 years ahead, where the most competitive economies in the world will be those that are clean, connected and resilient. Global trade will be led by green supply chains and countries that take the tough but strategic decisions now.
Two panels also discussed ‘Business action in the current context’ and ‘Keeping Climate Action a Priority – Key Business Concerns and Challenges.’ The afternoon also saw an hour of rich conversations within seven roundtables, designed to develop solutions to inform the UK Government’s Net Zero Council, of which CLG UK is a member. Outputs from these roundtables will be published later in the year.
Centre for Sustainable Finance’s (CSF) Business Case for Integrated Retrofit
London Climate Action Week saw the launch of CSF’s recent report, “The Business Case for Integrated Retrofit” with an in-person event hosted by ABN AMRO, bringing together voices from finance, the built environment, civil society, and academia.
The panel discussion sparked conversations about what’s truly at stake - and what’s possible - when considering the financial benefits of retrofitting. It examined:
- Retrofitting is about more than just carbon, it’s about health, comfort, and resilience - as climate risks grow, homes must become safe, adaptable spaces that work for people, not just for emissions targets
- UK housing stock is unprepared, with 1 in 4 at flood-risk by mid-century
- There needs to be a new narrative: retrofit messaging must go beyond jargon and kilowatts. Let’s talk cost savings, warmth, wellbeing, and community resilience - and make it real for people
- We need to upskill, share successes, and scale delivery - especially through place-based, community-led approaches that build trust and buy-in
- Finance and policy must align: from retrofitting guarantees to EPC reform and long-term policy signals, aligning regulation with financial tools is critical to unlock private capital.
Read the report, The Business Case for Integrated Retrofit: How banks, insurers, and the government can support healthy, efficient, and resilient homes
CSF’s event, How to scale blended finance for Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs)
CSF hosted a roundtable in partnership with S&P Global Ratings, where leaders across finance and policy came together to tackle one of the sector’s most persistent challenges: how to scale blended finance for EMDEs, taking a look at what fuels perceptions of risk and how it can often be different from realities on the ground.
Key insights included:
- Risks in emerging markets are often overestimated
- Currency, complexity and liquidity risks can be managed with the right tools – financial innovation, hedging, credit enhancements and guarantees
- Deals are often small and bespoke. Scaling solutions like project aggregation can build a stronger pipeline of bankable opportunities
- Data is improving. Better access will drive smarter decisions and faster action
- Stakeholder roles aren’t always clear. Early alignment and collaborative platforms are key to overcoming this
- EMDEs are resilient. Many have weathered crises better than developed markets
Keep an eye out for the full report which will launch in July.
CISL and Canopy launch partnership with L'Oréal at LCAW event
Canopy co-hosted a roundtable at Goals House to celebrate the announcement of its new partnership with L'Oréal. CISL’s Chief Innovation Officer, James Cole, moderated and it was co-hosted by Rachel Barre, Vice President of Sustainability, Environmental Leadership, L'Oréal. Together, we brought together leaders from innovation, sustainability, design, and finance to explore how we can turn promising sustainability innovations into scalable global solutions.
Key takeaways from the discussion:
- Startups are driving systems change. They see how the system needs to evolve - and work to create value where the market doesn’t yet
- Scalability requires more than great ideas. It demands a clear business case grounded in market needs, not just novel solutions
- Technology isn’t enough. Process innovation, financial innovation, and mindset shifts are essential to scale real impact
- Collaboration across industries is crucial. We need better mechanisms for corporates to work together - on regulation, on mobilising demand, and on creating conditions where sustainable innovation can thrive
- New models of investment are needed. Partnerships must be reimagined - not just with those who have capital, but with those who feel the pain points and drive urgency
- Diversity drives innovation. We must ensure underrepresented entrepreneurs have both a seat at the table and access to the capital and visibility they need.
Climate Innovation Forum
'If we want the global transition to happen, we should break the silos between the North and the South. Because climate transition has no flag.' This was the powerful message from Hakima Elhaité during a panel CISL’s Chief Innovation Officer, James Cole, moderated on Wednesday 25 June at the Climate Innovation Forum at London’s Guildhall.
James was also joined by Nigel Topping, CMG Founder of Ambition Loop and, like Hakima, a former COP High Level Champion familiar with both political negotiations and the need to engage the private sector and finance in delivery.
The session discussed the S-curve adoption; non-tech barriers to scaling climate tech; the role of governments and what policy support is needed to make markets for early-stage sustainable innovations to thrive and how we need to better price risk, including in Africa, where there is no lack of talent.
Hakima Elhaité closed with a reminder that the pathway in the global south does not have to follow the north, saying: "In the South, maybe we should not just copy the technology of the North; but we need to adapt it, taking into account the reality on the ground. But we know that we have a lot to learn from each other to build bridges."
Read James Cole’s reflections on London Climate Action Week 2025
Aviation Impact Accelerator (AIA) at the Royal Aeronautical Society
AIA co-lead, Rob Miller, delivered the opening keynote at the Royal Aeronautical Society Sustainability Conference, setting the tone for a day focused on action, collaboration, and systems-level thinking to drive aviation toward net zero.
The next five years are critical if the aviation sector is to reach net zero by 2050. Discover a few standout takeaways from Rob’s keynote: “When it comes to operation blue skies, we must learn by doing, through airspace-scale trials.”
"System-wide efficiency improvements could double fuel savings by 2050 but no one player can do it alone, we need to incentivise the whole system to work together.
“Biomass is like a limbo bar: every sector must stay under it to reach net zero. Without cross-sector resource management, emissions could end up higher than if the sector does nothing.
“Modelling hydrogen moonshots shows the biggest impact comes from targeting long-haul flights and major hub airports.”
Learn more about how governments and industry must act now to achieve net zero aviation by 2050 in the AIA report
CISL’s Canopy & 100+ Accelerator Founders vs Future Event: Startups Driving Sustainability Solutions
As part of London Climate Action Week 2025, CISL’s Canopy partnered with the 100+ Accelerator to co-host a high-energy pitch event spotlighting emerging sustainability startups. Held at the Guildhall, the event featured four Europe-based ventures presenting solutions across AB InBev’s key areas of interest: packaging, agriculture, water stewardship, and circular economy.
Arda Biomaterials, offering bio-based alternatives to leather and plastic using spent grain, was selected as the judges’ winner, while Beans, a food waste reduction platform, won the audience vote. The event underscored the importance of startup-corporate partnerships in scaling impactful innovations and highlighted the growing demand for market-ready solutions to global sustainability challenges.