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TBLI Impact Networking (Virtual Mixer)
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February 28
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TBLI Radical Truth Podcast
Reimagining Capital: How Aunnie Patton Power is Revolutionizing Impact Investment
Aunnie is the founder of Intelligent Impact, an Associate Fellow at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, and the author of "Adventure Finance: How to Create a Funding Journey That Blends Profit and Purpose."
With her extensive experience in designing innovative financing mechanisms across Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America, Aunnie brings a wealth of knowledge on how capital can be deployed to address our world's most pressing challenges.
In today's episode, we'll explore how technology is revolutionizing impact investing, discuss alternative funding models for social enterprises, and uncover the radical truths about what's really working—and what isn't—in the sustainable finance ecosystem.
So whether you're an experienced impact investor, a social entrepreneur seeking funding, or simply curious about how finance can drive positive change, you're in for an illuminating conversation.
This is TBLI Radical Truth, uncovering the bold ideas and honest perspectives shaping the future of sustainable finance.
BP expected to scrap renewables target in shift back to fossil fuels
Goal of increasing renewable energy generation 20-fold to be ditched, shareholders to be told this week
BP is expected to ditch a target to ramp up renewable energy generation by 2030 as part of a shift back towards fossil fuels when it presents its strategy to investors this week.
The chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, is poised to tell shareholders that the oil and gas company is scrapping its target to increase renewable generation 20-fold between 2019 and 2030 to 50 gigawatts, Reuters reported.
BP is also expected to ditch a target to reach underlying profits of $49bn (£38.8bn) this year and instead set an annual percentage growth target. The company previously hinted on a call with analysts that it could drop the targets. It missed its 2024 target of $40.9bn in underlying profits.
At an investor day in London on Wednesday, the company is likely to announce plans to divest assets and cut other low-carbon investments to reduce debt and increase returns, under mounting pressure from shareholders.
BP’s shares have fared worse than rivals in recent years and investors have become concerned about the 120-year-old company’s direction. The stock has lost almost a quarter of its market value in the past two years.
Two weeks ago, Auchincloss promised to “fundamentally reset” BP’s strategy as it reported a sharp slump in 2024 profits to $8.9bn, from $14bn the year before.
This came only days after Elliott Management, a prominent activist investor, reportedly built up a sizeable stake of about 5% of BP’s shares.
The New York-based hedge fund is expected to use its influence as a leading shareholder to demand sweeping changes, including a boardroom cull and a potential breakup of the company.
The company has already scaled back its target to reduce oil and gas output – set by Auchincloss’s predecessor Bernard Looney – by the end of the decade. In 2020, the last time it presented a comprehensive strategy update, it aimed for a 40% reduction, but changed this to a 25% reduction in 2023, and is expected to reduce it further on Wednesday.
BP declined to comment on what it described as speculation in the run-up to the investor day. The event, originally planned to take place in New York on 11 February, was delayed and will be held in London because Auchincloss is recovering from a medical procedure.
Other energy companies such as Shell have renewed their focus on oil and gas, chasing better returns after fossil fuel prices bounced back from pandemic lows, and after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago. The investor environment has also changed with the re-election of the US president, Donald Trump, a strong advocate of fossil fuels.
Since taking over, initially on an interim basis in September 2023, Auchincloss has scaled back investments in renewables and diluted BP’s climate pledges. He is also pushing through $2bn of cost cuts, which include cutting thousands of jobs and scrapping contractors to reduce the workforce by 5%.
Source
The uncertain future of the Green New Deal
Trump can't stop talking about a law that never passed. Should activists pick a new demand?
Since the first day of President Donald Trump’s second term, three little words keep coming up.
In one of his first executive orders, the president instructed agencies to terminate the so-called “Green New Deal,” which he has described as “ridiculous” and “incredibly wasteful.” The administration’s disdain for the concept is clear, with Trump and press secretary Karoline Leavitt referring to it as “the Green New Scam.”
In reality, there is no Green New Deal law in effect in the United States today, despite previous attempts to pass one in Congress. What Trump actually paused funding for in his executive order was the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, a spending bill passed under former president Joe Biden and the largest investment in clean energy in U.S. history.
The Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, was heralded as a major win for climate organizers — but most of them don’t think the law lives up to their original vision of a transition to renewable energy that creates good, well-paying jobs. In the face of rollbacks, these activists are questioning whether their calls for a Green New Deal have been effective or have divided voters. After Trump won the popular vote in November, some climate advocates are searching for new ways to talk about the changes they want to see, ones that might resonate more broadly across the political spectrum.
“This is a live question of debate,” said Dejah Powell, membership director of the Sunrise Movement. Some organizers worry the climate movement has failed to move the public, she said, partly because “[w]e actually are missing a total, compelling vision that touches on the undercurrent of where we are in society.”
If you had to pinpoint the moment when the Green New Deal burst into the public consciousness, it would be shortly after the 2018 midterms, when more than 200 young people with the Sunrise Movement orchestrated a sit-in outside Senator Nancy Pelosi’s office on Capitol Hill. The newly elected representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined the protesters, who urged Pelosi, the House’s Democratic leader, to pass stringent action on climate change. They came prepared with a draft resolution of what they called the “Green New Deal.” It was a reference to the New Deal of the 1930s, a series of ambitious initiatives and reforms — including the Civilian Conservation Corps, Social Security Act, and Works Progress Administration — that President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched to provide economic relief during the Great Depression.
In February 2019, Ocasio-Cortez, joined by Senator Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, introduced resolutions for a Green New Deal in both the House and the Senate. The plan called for a large-scale mobilization “not seen since World War II” to completely transform the economy, eliminate U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and create millions of jobs. At the time, people laughed at the idea, Markey said on a mass organizing call last month hosted by more than 50 climate organizations. The measure was largely symbolic: These were non-binding resolutions, meaning that even if they passed a vote in Congress, they would not become law. Either way, opponents made their disapproval known. The resolution failed in a Senate vote mere months later, and a second attempt in 2021 also went nowhere.
“But you know what we knew?” Markey said. “That we were building a movement that was going to build the momentum that was going to wind up with the IRA being passed.” Since the original resolution, Democrats have introduced a range of more targeted Green New Deal bills, focused on issues ranging from health to urban infrastructure to public housing to public schools. None of these bills made it out of committee.
Many credit the enthusiasm the Green New Deal generated for pushing Biden to prioritize climate change during his presidency, even if it didn’t result in exactly what they were calling for. The IRA is sometimes talked about as a mini Green New Deal — but there are key differences between the two. While both support reducing emissions, the Green New Deal resolutions in Congress called for a massive mobilization effort to reach net-zero emissions and transition to 100 percent renewable energy in 10 years. The IRA was far less ambitious, seeking only to reduce emissions by 40 percent by 2030.
Labour Ministers v to Double Grid Investment as Energy Demand Soars
The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) has issued a stark warning: without a dramatic increase in grid investment, the UK risks falling behind in its clean energy transition. With electricity demand projected to double by 2050, ministers must act swiftly to fortify the grid and ensure the seamless integration of renewable power sources.
As more households adopt electric vehicles (EVs) and heat pumps, the pressure on the grid is mounting. Yet, many consumers remain hesitant to switch—concerned about upfront costs and whether the energy supply can keep pace with rising demand.
According to the NIC’s latest report, the government must ramp up grid infrastructure investment, which could add £5-£25 to annual electricity bills by the mid-2030s. However, the report emphasises that with the proper policy backing for low-carbon energy and heating solutions, household energy costs could still drop below today’s levels in the long run.
The message is clear: without decisive intervention, the UK’s energy system risks literally and figuratively gridlock. As renewables take centre stage, the ability to connect, store, and distribute clean power efficiently will define the success of the nation’s net-zero ambitions. Ministers now face a critical decision: double down on infrastructure investment or risk a future of energy shortfalls, soaring bills, and stagnating decarbonisation efforts.
Sir John Armitt, Chair of the National Infrastructure Commission, said: ‘The UK is heading in the right direction on decarbonising power, but we can’t be complacent.
‘We must learn the lessons from playing catch-up on transmission grid expansion and get ahead of the curve on investing in our local networks so people can enjoy the benefits of electric vehicles and heat pumps safe in the knowledge the network will back them up and businesses can connect where and when they need to.’
Sam Richards, CEO of pro-growth campaign group Britain Remade, said: ‘For too long, slow grid connections and bureaucratic red-tape have held back investment, innovation, and job creation.
‘Ofgem must embrace a new, pro-growth approach that encourages investment, removes barriers to expansion, and delivers a network capable of supporting the new nuclear power stations and renewables that are needed to deliver the government’s mission of a clean grid by 2030.
Source
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