„Practitioners Dialogue on Climate Investments“: developing an innovative policy dialogue approach

Investment needed for mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and for adaptation to climate change are expected to reach hundreds of billions of Euros annually over the next decades. It is already clear that public funds will only be able to cover a part of these investment needs, and that the private sector will also have to contribute significantly. To date, actual private sector investments are less than expected. New systems for improved private sector engagement therefore have to be designed.

The GIZ project “Practitioners Dialogue on Climate Investments” sets out to use an international dialogue process to identify new ways to attract more significant private sector involvement in climate finance. adelphi was contracted to design and facilitate the dialogue series, and developed a completely new and innovative approach to policy dialogues along the way.

The 60+ participants met three times in person over a six-month period, with multiple webinars in between. The participants formed four sectoral groups on adaptation, energy efficiency, renewables, and regulation of financial systems, and jointly developed prototypes and policy briefs. In the end, the participants developed 27 prototypes and 8 policy briefs, several of which are already being implemented.

The practitioners dialogue format has emerged as an effective and efficient way to frame policy dialogues that promotes tangible outcomes and direct application. Furthermore, participants representing diverse stakeholder groups and backgrounds were able to be motivated to actively engage throughout the dialogue.