It was recently reported that Strategic Risk Solutions Europe (SRS) has introduced a carbon emission risk program to be run in conjunction with Carbon Risk Solutions.  The program will initially involve a series of workshops where sustainability directors and risk managers are invited to learn how they can identify, manage and finance the carbon emissions risks their firms face in the transition to the low carbon economy with a range of insurance-linked solutions, including the use of captives.

Stuart King, president of SRS Europe, echoed what many have said of the broader insurance industry in confronting climate change and its associated risks: “The insurance market has been rather slow to respond to carbon risk transfer solutions for multinationals. We see an opportunity to develop these programs within captives and cells, while the commercial market develops and becomes more comfortable with this emerging risk.”

I think this bodes well for our mighty little industry. As I stated in a previous blog, captives are well placed to deal with the vagaries of climate change and risk, and that those who wait too long may be too late.

VCIA continues to address and explore this issue with a number of sessions at our Annual Conference this coming August 7-9.  Our session Natural Catastrophes and their Impact on Risk Management will feature experts  sharing information on the potential impact of natural catastrophes on  risk management from a variety of viewpoints including  academic, actuarial and risk management.

The expert panel for this session includes:

Gillian Galford, an Earth Systems Scientist at the University of Vermont and lead author of the Vermont Climate Assessment; Howard Kunst, Senior Modeler and Chief Actuary, at CoreLogic; Jason Shafer, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Lyndon State Colleges, who focuses on the valuation of weather information within the private sector; and Brad Waldron, ‎Vice President, Risk Management at ‎Caesars Entertainment Corporation.

Registration for the VCIA Annual Conference opens May 1^st. We look forward to seeing many of you there for another excellent program!   Thank you and I look forward to hearing from you.