"The Carbon Bankroll 2.0: From Awareness to Action" is live! This breakthrough report illuminates the huge and untapped climate impact of the U.S. financial system, how it is undermining leading companies’ climate action, and why companies’ financial management may be their greatest lever for climate progress. Companies have historically treated their banking and investing as a climate-neutral activity, but as Topo Finance’s new report reveals, companies’ financial management may be both their largest source of emissions and their most powerful lever for climate action. This report, which builds on the pioneering research published in “The Carbon Bankroll 1.0,” illuminates that these overlooked emissions are larger and more ubiquitous than previously reported. As a result, companies have an even greater responsibility and opportunity to leverage their financial management to drive exponential emissions reduction. Notably, since publishing "Carbon Bankroll 1.0," a growing wave of companies and institutions are making their financial management a cornerstone of their sustainability work and creating real impact. We are excited to feature the groundbreaking work of leading companies Atlassian, Patagonia, and Seventh Generation in the report and to share guidance on the seven key steps companies' can take to leverage this historically overlooked climate power. A big thank you to our supporting partners for helping make this report happen: WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Exponential Roadmap Initiative, Futerra, Pure Strategies, Inc., BankFWD, Climate Safe Lending Network. And a special thanks to the incredible Topo Finance team that developed this landmark report: Rebecca Self, Joel A., James Vaccaro, Patrick Flynn, Quinntavious Williams, Blake Helman, Joy Metcalf, Susanne Orton, Jamie Beck Alexander, Paul Moinester.
Topo Finance
Think Tanks
Seatttle, WA 981 followers
We work to transform the financial system into a force for creating a more just, equitable, and regenerative world.
About us
Topo Finance is a team of innovators and visionaries committed to enabling all businesses, organizations, and individuals to leverage their finances as a force for creating a more regenerative, equitable world. We are a nonprofit organization that we designed to be different and make a difference. We exist to pursue audacious solutions for people and the planet in the most grounded, strategic, and collaborative ways possible.
- Website
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https://www.topofinance.org
External link for Topo Finance
- Industry
- Think Tanks
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Headquarters
- Seatttle, WA
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Founded
- 2018
Locations
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Primary
Get directions
Seatttle, WA 98116, US
Employees at Topo Finance
Updates
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“Around the world, individuals are becoming increasingly adept at applying a climate lens to how we spend our money. However, what The Individual Cash Calculator illuminates is that applying this same climate lens to where we deposit our money can be as impactful as how we spend it, which is why everyone needs to harness their banking as a powerful climate lever.” - Topo Finance’s Founder and Executive Director, Paul Moinester. Topo Finance and Compose[d] are excited to release The Individual Cash Calculator, which allows individuals to measure the emissions of their banking activity and determine the climate benefits of moving their money to greener banks. Jason Parkin, BankFWD, Rebecca Self, @Joel A., Patrick Flynn, James Vaccaro, Jamie Beck Alexander. https://lnkd.in/eUJiGBdQ
We have long known that personal banking is an overlooked and promising climate lever. However, thanks to our research at Topo Finance, we now know this intervention is far more powerful than we previously believed. That's why we're excited to announce the launch of a new, updated version of The Individual Cash Calculator. Featuring new data and capabilities, this tool enables individuals to measure the emissions their banking generates as well as the climate benefits of moving their money to greener banks. By doing so, the tool helps illuminate the fact that where individuals bank is one of the most important consumer climate decisions we all make. So please check it out today and learn how you can align your banking with your climate values. Compose[d], BankFWD, Jason Parkin Rebecca Self, Joel A., Patrick Flynn, James Vaccaro, Jamie Beck Alexander. https://lnkd.in/e2jyPK-3
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An informative U.S. News & World Report article by author Kate Stalter on the challenges investors face in verifying sustainability claims. Transparency and accuracy are crucial in this space. Topo Finance Advisor and Founder of Seawolf Consulting, Rebecca Self, contributes by highlighting the importance of regulatory oversight and disclosure requirements. #SustainableFinance #GreenInvesting #Transparency
Co-Founder and Managing Director of Seawolf Sustainability Consulting, Experienced finance and sustainability professional, Views my own
Pleased to contribute to this article about greenwashing and sustainable investments (link below). "Currently most sustainability claims are voluntary," highlighting the need for greater regulatory oversight to prevent misleading customers. Rebecca Self, a sustainable finance analyst supporting Topo Finance, emphasizes the importance of new regulations in the U.K. and Europe, enforcing more stringent metrics for companies promoting their green credentials. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/eGsX5BiZ
What Does Greenwashing Mean in Sustainable Investing?
money.usnews.com
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Incredible insight! Much appreciation to Grant Harrison, Joanna Bonnett, Nimerta Sirichand, CFA, Molly Wood, and Topo Finance Executive Director Paul Moinester for showcasing how corporate cash can drive climate progress. Seventh Generation/Unilever/Patagonia, and others are leading the way. Excited to see more companies follow suit! #ClimateAction #GreenFin
For years, corporate cash has been overlooked as a lever for driving transformative climate impact. But as we've discovered at Topo Finance, companies cash is not just a major source of emissions - it is also their greatest climate superpower. Thanks to Grant Harrison and the team at GreenBiz Group, I was able to join Joanna Bonnett and Nimerta Sirichand, CFA, two pioneering corporate finance leaders, as well as Molly Wood on stage at the recent GreenFin Conference to share how companies such as Seventh Generation/Unilever, Patagonia, and others are leveraging their corporate treasury as a powerful force for climate progress.
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With our Carbon Bankroll 2.0 report, we developed 5 invaluable insights that illuminate the huge and untapped climate impact of the U.S. financial system, how it is undermining leading companies’ climate action, and why companies’ financial management may be their greatest lever for climate progress. Check out Topo Finance's Executive Director's Paul Moinester's post about finding #1 - the staggering emissions enabled by the U.S.'s largest financial firms.
For years, climate finance experts have known that the U.S. financial sector’s lending and investing was deeply carbon-intensive. However, the scale of the emissions enabled by the nation’s largest financial firms have remained shrouded in mystery largely because they have not reported them. However, with The Carbon Bankroll 2.0, we discovered that if the largest banks and asset managers in the U.S. were a country, they would be the third-largest emitting country in the world, behind China and the U.S. This staggering data illuminates the central role the largest financial firms play in enabling emissions throughout the global economy. Plus, it underscores why it is essential these firms aggressively reduce the emissions stemming from their lending and investing practices. To learn more about why it's essential that all customers - companies organizations, and individuals - engage with their banks about their climate performance, check out Topo Finance's The Carbon Bankroll 2.0 at https://lnkd.in/e6nn4Kf6. Rebecca Self, Joel A., James Vaccaro, Patrick Flynn, Jamie Beck Alexander WBCSD – World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Exponential Roadmap Initiative, Futerra, Pure Strategies, Inc. Climate Safe Lending Network, BankFWD
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We were proud to feature the pioneering climate finance work of our friends at Atlassian, Patagonia, and Seventh Generation in our recent Carbon Bankroll report. This great article by Grant Harrison in GreenBiz Group highlights the important steps these companies are taking to integrate their financial management into their core sustainability and social work. Through this work, these companies are blazing a path for others to follow. For any companies interested in leveraging this hidden climate power, please know that our team at Topo Finance is here to help - Rebecca Self, Joel A., James Vaccaro, and Patrick Flynn. A big thanks to Ashley Orgain, Kate Ogden, Charlie Bischoff, Yvonne Besvold, and their teams for their critical work.
How Patagonia and Seventh Generation include banks in their climate action plans | GreenBiz
greenbiz.com
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A great article in Fast Company by our friend and colleague Kate Williams (CEO of 1% for the Planet). We're proud to work with Kate and her team, which are leading the charge on financed emissions with their global network with thousands of businesses and environmental organizations.
A great piece by our friend and colleague Kate Williams (CEO of 1% for the Planet) about how many companies are not yet incorporating their banking and investing into their climate work, why they should, and what they can do about it. It's a great teaser for Topo Finance's upcoming Carbon Bankroll report, which is going live next week and provides powerful new data that build's on Kate's words. James Vaccaro, Rebecca Self, Patrick Flynn, and Joel A..
This could be your company’s number one source of emissions—and it may not even be on your list
fastcompany.com
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What if we told you that if the largest banks and asset managers in the U.S. were a country, they would be the third-largest emitting country in the world, behind China and the United States? Crazy right?!? Well that's what our research about the emissions generated by the largest financial firms shows. In 2024, we will publish several reports that illuminate the carbon-intensive nature of the financial system and what it means for you, your business, and your organizations. Plus, we are going to launch a suite of tools and services that can help everyone transform their finances into a force for progress. Ahead of releasing these reports and tools, we are excited to share a preview of the powerful research findings that are powering our work. Rebecca Self, James Vaccaro, Patrick Flynn, Quinntavious Williams, Susanne Orton, Blake Helman, Joel A., and Paul Moinester
Banking on Profound Progress — TopoFinance
topofinance.org
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We could not be more excited to have Patrick Flynn on our team helping companies transform their finances into one of their most powerful levers for climate action. If you're interested in leveraging this historically overlooked avenue for impact, please let us know. We're here to help.
A ***big swing for climate*** that you can take to the bank… (instead of reading what's below, you could instead just watch the attached video...short enough that you could do it while you brush your teeth) I’m excited to join forces with the team at Topo Finance to help companies transform their finances into one of their most powerful levers for climate action. Did you know that every $1B deposited in a large US bank is, on average, resulting in about 300,000 metric tons of emissions every year, due to how they're lending that money, including to fossil fuel development? This means that, especially for companies with sizable cash positions, these emissions are really big - sometimes even larger than their Scope 1, 2 and 3 combined! This is a huge and largely untapped lever for big change. It’s not about vilifying banks or leaving them. It’s not about divesting wholesale from heavy emitting sectors; we need to finance the decarbonization transition, after all. It’s also not about asking Corporate Treasury to lessen any of their stringent constraints. Banks have teams of experts poised to innovate and deliver climate solutions in the form of financial products that meet the necessary risk and liquidity needs. But, critically, they need to hear the demand signal from you, right now. This is about recognizing that your banks are the most important “supplier” you have for climate action, even if they’re not in Scope 3.1. So! Bring the treasury team into your team of climate allies within your company, just like you’ve done with procurement. Work hand-in-hand with them to engage your banks like any other supplier. If you’re already well down this path, I’d love to hear about your success and highlight it. If you’d like to learn more, just reach out. The expert team at Topo Finance is ready with tools, data and guidance to help you, for free. This is all about the climate impact. Paul Moinester Rebecca Self James Vaccaro https://lnkd.in/eu5p546h
Banking Emissions - A Big Swing for Climate
https://www.youtube.com/
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Last year, Project Drawdown approached us with this question: could we calculate what bank switching looks like as individual climate action? Today, we published the answer in the "Saving (for) the Planet" report. This report makes it abundantly clear that where individuals bank is one of the most important climate decisions they make. As powerful as the data featured in this report is, it is just a baseline for banking as a climate action. Stay tuned for more data and reports dropping in 2024 that illuminate why our banking is the most overlooked yet powerful climate lever we have, and what individuals, businesses, and organizations can do to harness it. A big hat tip to our great co-authors Jamie Beck Alexander and Julian Kraus-Polk as well as members of the Topo team that made this report possible Rebecca Self, Quinntavious Williams, Joel A., and Paul Moinester.
Saving (for) the Planet — TopoFinance
topofinance.org