By Faridat Salifu
The gap between growing awareness of climate risks and the financial decisions needed to address them will come under scrutiny in Edinburgh, Scotland, where two sustainable finance experts are set to debate why climate action continues to fall short despite mounting evidence of its economic consequences.
Frédéric Samama, a pioneer of green finance, and sustainable finance author Simon Thompson will lead the discussion at Panmure House on Friday, October 9, 2026, during an event hosted by Heriot-Watt University’s Centre for Financing a Sustainable Future.
The event, titled The Enigma of Climate Inaction: Why do we continue to fall short on climate action?, will examine why governments, institutions and investors have struggled to translate extensive knowledge of climate risks into meaningful action.
Professor Håvard Halland, Professor and Chair of Sustainable Finance at Heriot-Watt’s Edinburgh Business School, said the discussion was intended to confront the persistence of climate inaction despite widespread understanding of the threat.
“We know climate change is one of the greatest threats facing humanity. Yet, we continue to fall short,” Halland said.
Samama, who will open the event, is expected to draw on economics, philosophy and cognitive science to examine why societies and institutions continue to rely on systems and models that may no longer adequately reflect changing environmental and economic realities.
He said the challenge was no longer simply about a lack of information.
“Humanity has never been more aware of the risks of climate change, yet our collective response remains short of what we are told by leading authorities is needed,” Samama said.
He argued that the central question now is why knowledge of climate risks has not translated into more decisive action.
Samama has played a role in the development of low-carbon equity indices and helped develop research underpinning the first IPCC-aligned equity indices. He also worked with the International Finance Corporation on one of the first large-scale green bond funds focused on infrastructure in emerging markets.
His work has also examined climate change and financial stability, including through The Green Swan, which he co-authored with colleagues at the Bank for International Settlements, Banque de France and Columbia University.
Environmental Finance named Samama Personality of the Year at its 2026 Sustainable Investment Awards, while he previously testified before the US Senate on the economic risks associated with climate change.
Thompson, former Managing Director of the Global Capacity Building Coalition, will join the debate and engage with participants during an open question-and-answer session.
He is the author of Green and Sustainable Finance: Principles and Practice in Banking, Investment and Insurance, a widely used text for finance professionals and students, and was the founding chair of the UK’s Sustainable Finance Education Charter.
Thompson said the discussion should encourage professionals to reassess how climate and sustainability considerations are incorporated into decisions across their industries.
“We hope it will give people the knowledge and confidence to go away and question their own practices in their own industries,” he said.
The event is expected to attract participants from Edinburgh’s finance, policy and academic communities, as well as students and members of the public interested in climate change.
The discussion will take place from 2pm to 4pm at Panmure House, the former Edinburgh home of economist Adam Smith, where he lived from 1778 until his death in 1790.
The historic building became a meeting place for figures associated with the Scottish Enlightenment and was later restored by Edinburgh Business School and Heriot-Watt University following a £5.6 million, 10-year renovation.
