Nature Conservancy’s Dave Jones: Insurers Could Benefit From Impact Investing
July 8, 2019 by Best's Insurance News & Analysis
SINGAPORE – Dave Jones, senior director at The Nature Conservancy and California’s former insurance commissioner, said insurers should consider investing in environmental reclamation projects that sell credits into cap and trade markets. He spoke with AM BestTV at the Global Insurance Forum.
Following is an edited transcript of the interview.
Q: What is the Nature Conservancy doing here at an international insurance conference?
A: We have a number of very important partnerships with insurance companies where we’re working to align insurance with investments in nature that reduce risk. Perhaps the best example is our partnership with Swiss Re that involves they’re writing a parametric insurance product for the coral reef that lies off of the Cancun Peninsula.
The scientists said The Nature Conservancy has demonstrated that coral reef and coral reefs across the globe dramatically reduce the impact of storms. Having a healthy coral reef can make a real difference for the properties behind it.
Of course, in Cancun, you have all of those very, very expensive and important high-value properties, hotels, and resorts. We’ve developed the partnership with the hotel association in Cancun in the Mexican State of Quintana Roo and Swiss Re to have a parametric insurance policy issued for the reef.
The hotel association is contributing to a fund that goes to pay the premium on that insurance. The insurance pays out when they have a certain level of magnitude storm. The proceeds of insurance are used to restore the reef. The Nature Conservancy has trained people in the Cancun area to do the re-forestation.
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