Auftritt für responsAbility in Mongolia
Harriet Jackson, you are the Green Lending Analyst for the a responsAbility-managed energy fund focusing on climate investments. Earlier this month, you participated in the first Green Financing Forum organized by Mongolia-based partner XacBank. What was the purpose of the event?
Under the event’s theme “turning opportunity into reality,” XacBank wanted to show how loans can finance energy conservation, energy efficiency, and the production and trade of sustainable energy technologies and services.
What type of audience was XacBank targeting?
The target audience was very broad: Over 350 civilians, businesses, government officials, NGOs, and international organizations attended the event in order to learn about green business development.
What was your contribution?
Our energy fund has been investing in XacBank for green energy lending purposes since 2012. At the event we explained how we measure energy efficiency measure and why low carbon investments and private sector involvement are necessary on a global level. What was your key message to the audience?
Measuring and managing energy usage saves costs for businesses and can be simple.
Decreasing renewable energy costs are increasing the viable alternatives.
There is a direct link between the type of energy used and the local environment – Ulaanbaatar residents are already acutely aware of this due to the terrible pollution problem during the winter months.
What insights did you gain?
There is growing awareness about climate change due to desertification and extremely high levels of pollution in Ulaanbaatar. As a result, there is large interest for eco-loans as well as lots of energy and activity ongoing to improve energy efficiency on various levels. At the same time, cost is still the overriding important factor for majority of people and businesses.
Watch Harriet Jackson talk about green lending opportunities at the first Annual Green Financing Forum organized by Mongolia’s XacBank held on 6 September, 2016, in Ulaanbaatar.