International Co-operative Banking Association Annual Seminar:
Co-operative banks contribution to the Green Growth
Geneva, November 18th, 2009

The reality of global warming leads to a scientific and political consensus on the urgent need to act. The Kyoto protocol, until the Copenhagen climate summit, and the climate package in Europe, set an objective to confront the global warming: reducing the greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy is a main factor of growth and development. Its consumption increase as population and economies do. To fight global warming and meet energy needs, “a green economy”, making wise use of natural resources, energetically efficient and using renewable energies has to be developed. A new growth model is coming into existence: the green growth.

This new growth model, which is a solution to climate change, is also an opportunity to get out from the current economic crisis. It implies long term investments and proximity relations between investors and SMEs, which is a specificity of co-operative banks. Consequently, they can contribute to this growth.

Co-operative bank’s contribution to the green growth can take many aspects:

- Adopting an environmental credit policy. Co-operative banks can finance innovative and efficient environmental businesses.

- Environmental investments funds. Co-operatives banks can develop such funds or invest in those already existing.

- Improving their environmental performance by managing the use of natural resources (gas, electricity) and restricting their impact on their environment.

This seminar will be an opportunity to discover and assess some innovative projects developed by co-operative banks in this field, in order to identify best practices and share our views and strategies on this issue.

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