Climate Resilience in Action: How Credit Unions are Driving Change and Innovation

TOPICS

Climate Change

FIW Year

2024

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Summary + Key Findings

Credit unions are advancing climate resilience through innovative partnerships, financial inclusion, and tailored solutions for vulnerable communities.

🌊 Community-Centric Approach: Credit unions leverage their close ties with members to offer tailored financial solutions, enhancing resilience in the face of climate-related challenges. This proximity enables better understanding of individual needs, allowing for personalized support during crises.

📉 Regulatory Adaptation: As climate-related regulations evolve, credit unions must proactively adapt their strategies and operations to ensure compliance while continuing to serve vulnerable populations effectively.

🌳 Sustainable Financing: Offering green loans and technical assistance is key for credit unions to help members transition to sustainable practices, promoting environmental stewardship alongside financial stability.

📈 Data-Driven Solutions: Utilizing advanced data analytics and AI can enhance credit unions’ ability to assess climate risks and develop effective adaptation strategies, improving decision-making processes.

🔄 Education and Awareness: Continuous education on climate risks and adaptation strategies is vital for empowering credit union members, ensuring they understand the implications of climate change on their finances and communities.

🤝 Collaborative Partnerships: Building partnerships with fintechs and other organizations can drive innovation in climate finance, creating a more robust support system for credit union members facing climate challenges.

📅 Future Focus: The emphasis on developing climate finance products and training programs will be crucial for credit unions to enhance resilience in their communities and adapt to the evolving landscape of climate risks.

This session summary was AI-generated using NoteGPT.

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Climate change has caused USD 1.5 trillion in global losses over the past decade, with the least developed countries and vulnerable populations bearing the brunt of its impact. The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) works with credit unions (CUs) worldwide, which have witnessed the severe climate impacts on their members, from floods in Brazil and droughts in Ecuador to hurricanes in the Caribbean.

This has fostered practical tools that build climate resilience through identifying risks, providing climate adaptation solutions, and supporting recovery from climate shocks. A panel of practitioners will share experiences of credit unions in Brazil, the Caribbean and Ecuador highlighting demand-driven and bottom-up approaches to increasing resilience and preparedness to withstand shocks among their members. It will present digital solutions and explore the potential of AI in scaling climate resilience efforts.

Session Speakers

Eileen Miamidian

Technical Director, WOCCU

Eileen Miamidian joined WOCCU in 2023 as the Technical Director for Inclusive Financial Services, leading climate initiatives and providing technical guidance to global programs. With over 25 years of experience across 30+ countries, she has expertise in financial inclusion, financial institution management, and multi-donor programs. Prior to WOCCU, she was Ayani BV’s Chief Operating Officer, focusing on financial inclusion, MSMEs, rural development, and sustainability. At Global Communities, she supported microfinance subsidiaries to secure over $75 million in debt funding. Ms. Miamidian holds a Master of Science in Agricultural Economics.

Pedro Lutz Ramos

Superintendent of Treasury, Sicredi

Pedro Lutz Ramos is the Treasury Superintendent and former Chief Economist at SICREDI, one of Brazil’s largest credit union networks, where he manages financial analysis, research, sustainable finance, and international trade. Under his leadership, SICREDI’s Macroeconomic Research Department has become a top forecaster of the Brazilian economy, earning over 30 annual awards from the Brazilian Central Bank and Grupo Estado de São Paulo. Previously, he worked in Corporate Finance, handling liquidity, capital, and profitability analyses for all SICREDI Cooperatives and SICREDI Bank. He also teaches macroeconomics and econometrics in MBA programs and has published papers in various economic journals. Mr. Ramos holds a Ph.D. in economics specializing in macroeconomic modeling and monetary policy.

Denise Garfield

General Manager, Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions (CCCU)

Denise is the General Manager of CCCU and The CCCU Development Foundation, with 28 years of professional experience, 24 of which have been in the Credit Union sector. She spent 15 years serving the Jamaican Credit Union Movement and nine years at the regional level. Prior to this, she worked as the Financial Accountant with the Sugar industry. Her expertise includes research, accounting, business development, project management, and strategic planning. Denise holds a Master’s in International Business and a Bachelor’s in Accounting (Honors) from the University of the West Indies and is certified in Project Management.

Christoph Jungfleisch

Founder and CEO, YAPU Solutions

Christoph Jungfleisch has built his career promoting scalable, inclusive climate and nature finance. He has held roles in SME, micro-, and smallholder finance with IPC/ProCredit Holding, Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, and ENGIE Mobisol, and has advised on climate finance for IDB Lab and UNEP. As founder and Managing Director of YAPU Solutions, he oversees the first operating system for digital Resilience and Adaptation Finance, leading projects with over 80 financial institutions across Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa. He also co-initiated the Scale for Resilience initiative under the UNFCCC Race to Resilience campaign, aligning with global and national climate strategies such as the SDGs and NDCs.

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