Sustainability

Climate Week NYC 2025: Financing the Transition and Building Resilience

Climate Week NYC brings together global leaders from business, government, and civil society, to drive climate action.

29 Sep 2025

Several of our colleagues joined the summit this year, participating in roundtables and discussing crucial issues like energy transition, nature and regenerative agriculture, physical climate risk and financial resilience.

Below we’ve summarised key themes and takeaways from the sessions we attended.

Energy Transition: From Momentum to Maturity

The energy transition is no longer a future ambition, it’s happening now. Global clean energy investment is projected to reach $3.3 trillion in 2025, with solar alone attracting $450 billion .

Capital is increasingly flowing toward the infrastructure that underpins deep decarbonisation, from grid upgrades and transmission to electrification and critical minerals. However, to meet net-zero goals, the clean-to-fossil investment ratio must shift from 2:1 to 4:1 by 2030.

AI & Data Centres: The Energy Demand Surge

The exponential growth in data centres, driven by AI, cloud computing, and digital infrastructure, is triggering a massive increase in energy demand, with implications for grid resilience, critical minerals, and clean energy deployment.

Investors are shifting focus to next-generation energy technologies, including battery-to-grid systems, advanced geothermal and flexible grid infrastructure. The convergence of AI and energy is also unlocking new risk analytics, such as satellite-based climate tracking and geospatial data tools, enabling more precise climate analytics.

Insurance: A New Frontline for Climate Resilience

With 27 billion-dollar disasters in the U.S. last year , insurance is emerging as a critical enabler of climate adaptation. Regulators emphasized that climate risk is now a systemic financial issue, with affordability and availability of coverage under pressure.

New insurance products are unlocking finance for decarbonisation, while parametric cover tied to nature outcomes (e.g., reefs, wildfire, flood) is gaining traction. Enhanced data disclosure, including ZIP-code-level exposure, is helping regulators and insurers better assess solvency risks and incentivize mitigation.

Nature: From Fragmentation to Finance

Nature is finally entering the mainstream of climate finance, but the funding gap remains stark. $7 trillion per year still flows to nature-negative activity, compared to just $200 billion for nature-positive efforts.

Scaling nature finance requires standardized metrics, de-risking mechanisms, and corporate co-funding. Insurance products tied to nature outcomes could help in unlocking capital at scale.

Financing Resilience: Responding to Physical Climate Risk

Adaptation is gaining ground. 35% of companies now have adaptation plans, up from 20% just 18 months ago, with the Utilities sector leading the way.

Rising physical climate risks, from wildfires to water stress, are reshaping investment priorities. Investors are increasingly backing solutions that not only mitigate exposure but also deliver measurable resilience. Adaptation planning is gaining traction, especially in asset-heavy sectors where climate vulnerability can be directly linked to financial outcomes.

Want to know more?

If you want to discuss any of the topics raised at this year’s Climate Week NYC, please reach out to one of our specialists:

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