2022 was a busy year for the climate movement with peaks and troughs throughout. We saw economic volatility and war in Europe change our reliance on fossil fuels. We saw successful and unsuccessful summits, talks and conferences, bringing us 'loss and damage finance', fossil fuel lobbyists and commitments to protect biodiversity. We saw seriously questionable behaviour by governments and big business as greenwashing spreads and green commitments fall by the wayside. Importantly, we also experienced moments of sheer joy through positive developments in areas ranging from technology to rewilding, to seeing a gradual shift in public awareness of the climate crisis. As the festive season drew to a close and we stepped into a new year once again full of hope for what could be achieved it is important that we take a moment to look back and remind ourselves of those moments which have shaped sustainable finance moving into 2023.

Cop26 is less than six months behind us and already we are seeing that the agreements made are not evergreen. Instead, autumn has come early as each pledge, like a leaf turned brown and weakened by the retraction of energy, falls from the tree, leaving the branches bare and waiting for another spring to grow back into full, but temporary glory. With Cop27 a year away the climate news of the last few weeks should create great cause for concern. Whilst pledges are being implemented, many are facing challenges and we must be patient in allowing both the private and public sector to find new solutions to the age-old issues that plague sustainability and net-zero aims.