The world has recently experienced the worst financial and economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. There is a wide consensus among financial sector experts, economists, and other stakeholders that financial institutions need to embrace sustainability to address social and environmental challenges and also to ensure profitability. In fact, the very survival of financial institutions now depends on their ability to embed sustainability in their core business strategy.

Some of the financial industry players are already successfully turning the current challenges arising in the wake of deepening economic, financial and environmental crisis into opportunities. They are positioning themselves as institutions ready to meet the requirements of next economy – the sustainable economy. And as the green industry is now widely considered the engine of next economic growth, the greening of financial institutions - across the globe - is now inevitable.

As part of The International Sustainability Initiative, Global Sustainable Finance Program is being introduced for greening the facilities and operations of financial institutions and for designing green financial products and services. Under the auspices of the World Federation of Development Financing Institutions (WFDFI) and in cooperation with the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP), ETECH has launched the Global Sustainable Finance Network. In addition, the Second Global Sustainable Finance Conference will be hosted from the 5th to 6th of July 2012.