- Overview
- Agenda
- Speakers
Managing the economic and financial risks of nature loss is an essential task for governments, financial institutions, and real economy corporates alike. The erosion of biodiversity and degradation of ecosystems are transforming the global risk landscape, and central banks increasingly recognize that healthy ecosystems underpin macro-financial stability. But how can the financial sector effectively measure and manage these complex risks?
In the absence of fully-fledged nature risk scenarios, a surge of practical tools has emerged to help financial institutions gauge where nature loss could threaten their portfolios. How can these tools be applied effectively, and what role can national authorities play in guiding the financial sector?
This webinar provides insight into ongoing World Bank work on assessing and managing nature-related financial risks, highlighting its cooperation with partners in Malaysia and Kenya. The webinar will focus on practical applications, including technical assistance to align corporate and financial sector disclosures with the taskforce for nature-related financial disclosure (TNFD) framework. The webinar will also cover recent technical discussions at the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) to advance nature-economy modeling and scenario design, providing a forward-looking view on this critical agenda. By the end, participants will get a better understanding of the emerging tools available to central banks and financial institutions to measure and manage nature-related financial risks—and how these tools are being used in practice.
Welcome and Opening Remarks - Saskia de Vries, Practice Manager, World Bank Group |
| Recent Developments in Nature Risk Assessment - Nepomuk Dunz, Senior Economist, World Bank Group |
Insights from applying financial risk assessment and disclosure in practice – The case of Malaysia
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Q&A |
| Closing Remarks - GianLeo Frisari, Senior Financial Specialist, World Bank Group |
Saskia de Vries is the practice manager for Financial System Resilience and Integrity at the World Bank. She leads the team on financial system resilience and integrity, at a time of growing financial vulnerabilities. The team supports EMDE financial sector authorities around the world in implementing global regulatory and supervisory standards, and cutting-edge best practices, through diagnostics, technical assistance and lending, and research and knowledge. Amongst others, Saskia is responsible for the Financial Sector Assessment Program at the World Bank. Saskia was previously head of International Financial Architecture and Financial Stability at the Dutch Central Bank and co-chair of the NGFS Task Force on Nature-related Risks. Saskia holds a PhD in financial economics.
Nepomuk Dunz is a Senior Economist at the World Bank Group’s Financial Services Sector department. His work focuses on macro-financial stability as well as climate- and nature-related financial risks and opportunities, where he is currently leading the work on climate-related financial risk assessment and stress-testing for the World Bank. Nepo also currently serves as co-lead of the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) Nature Task Force subgroup focused on developing nature-related financial risk scenarios. Nepo holds a B.Sc. in International Economics and European Studies from University of Tübingen, and a M.Sc. in Socio-Ecological Economics as well as a Doctorate in Climate Macroeconomics and Finance, both from Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU) in Austria.
Eva Bortolotti is a Programme Specialist in Nature Finance at UNDP, where she works at the intersection of biodiversity, finance, and policy to unlock public and private capital for the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework and the 2030 Agenda. In her global role, she supports the technical programming of strategic initiatives on nature-related risk assessment, disclosure, and innovative financing for nature, including the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), the Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN), and the Nature Investment Facility (NIF). She brings seven years of experience in sustainable development policy initiatives across Africa, Latin America and Asia. Eva holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the Geneva Graduate Institute.
Katie Lee is a Climate Policy Strategist in the Sustainability Unit of Bank Negara Malaysia, which is responsible for driving the strategic direction and execution of the Bank’s sustainability agenda. Her experience includes development of financial sector policies to build climate resilience and support transition within the Malaysian economy, and research into areas such as flood and nature-related risks. She holds a Master of Laws from Columbia University.
GianLeo Frisari is a Senior Financial Sector Specialist at World Bank Group’s Financial Services Sector department, focusing on climate finance instruments and development of sustainable capital markets, including sustainability-linked structures for climate and nature goals. He joined the World Bank in 2024 from the Inter-American Development Bank where he developed climate finance solutions and sustainable financial instruments for the public sector, such as sovereign governments in Latin America and the Caribbean. GianLeo holds a Ph.D. in “Science and Management of Climate Change” from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, graduated in Economics from Bocconi University in Milan and is a Chartered Alternative Investments Analyst (CAIA).
Date: January 29, 2026
Time: 09:00 AM - 10:00 AM ET
Virtual:
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