Broker tells AIRMIC conference that firms can make a difference.
Sustainability is much more than just a theoretical challenge and has become a factor that affects any organisation’s risk profile, the AIRMIC conference heard today.
Sunny Sehgal, head of environmental risks at HSBC Brokers, said that a firm’s success in getting on top of the issue would ultimately make a difference to their competitive position.
“Part of the risk manager’s role, in my view, is to get sustainability onto the boardroom agenda,” he told a breakout session. “It has an impact on business continuity, regulatory risk, reputation and right across the board.”
Climate change, threats to health, demographic change, man-made risks and the scarcity of some natural resources were among the topics under the spotlight. “The recent surge in the price of oil and basic foodstuffs is just a small example of why we have to be thinking ahead, understanding how tomorrow may be different from today,” he said.
"The solution could be found by embedding these considerations into corporate Enterprise Risk Management," he added.
“Risk managers have the skill set to address these issues, and to put them before their boards.”
Much of the talk focussed on the work of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative, which speaks for the global insurance industry on sustainability matters, with the UN’s Butch Bacani co-presenting.
