PRI in Person 2025: CEO David Atkin on Institutional Investors to Take Center Stage Ahead of COP 30
Key Takeaways
- Institutional investors front and center at COP 30: Hosting PRI in Person 2025 in São Paulo the week before COP 30 will position investors as active participants in shaping global climate and biodiversity policy.
- Mobilizing capital into emerging markets: David Atkin emphasized that unlocking investment into regions like Brazil is critical to linking economic growth with sustainable, nature-positive outcomes.
- Creating an enabling policy environment: PRI is working with the COP 30 Presidency and the Brazilian government to design frameworks that attract large-scale private finance into the transition economy.
As the global community prepares for COP 30 in Belém, Brazil, the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is putting institutional investors at the heart of the sustainability dialogue at PRI in Person 2025.
The organization’s flagship event, PRI in Person 2025, will take place in São Paulo the week before COP 30. The gathering will unite leading investors, policymakers, and sustainability experts from around the world to explore how finance can accelerate climate action.
PRI CEO David Atkin sat down with ESG News and Jim Manczak to discuss the event’s agenda and its connection to COP 30. He said the timing and location were intentional.
“We saw an opportunity to bring institutional investors more front and center into the COP 30 process by hosting our annual global conference in Brazil,” Atkin explained. “It’s about mobilizing capital at scale into emerging and developing economies and linking climate, biodiversity, and nature through investable pathways.”
Atkin added that Brazil offers a compelling case study for aligning sustainability goals with economic growth. Local investors have shown that environmental and social progress can coexist with financial returns. Still, challenges persist—particularly around risk perception, regulatory clarity, and access to capital.
“The public sector’s fiscal capacity is strained globally,” he noted. “For the trillions needed to drive the transition, private capital must be part of the solution. That means creating the right policy and market environments to unlock those investments.”
To that end, PRI is working closely with the COP 30 Presidency and the Brazilian government to identify enabling policies and frameworks that can accelerate sustainable finance flows. The outcomes of these discussions will be showcased at PRI in Person 2025 and carried forward into the COP 30 negotiations.
RELATED ARTICLE: Billionaire Bill Gates Urges Climate Policy Rethink Ahead of COP30 in Brazil
As the world’s largest gathering of responsible investors, PRI in Person 2025 will spotlight how institutional capital can help close the gap between ambition and implementation—advancing the transition toward a resilient, inclusive, and low-carbon global economy.
ESG News’ Climate Week NYC coverage was made possible through the support of Novata, a leader in ESG and sustainability reporting, ESGCX, and PATH Water, and our event partner, The Nest Climate Campus.
Editorial Disclaimer
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length. Some statements have been paraphrased for readability while preserving the accuracy, intent, and meaning of the speaker’s original remarks as expressed during the recorded conversation.
