Sustainable Investment Forum 28-29 Apr 2026: Innovation Zero World

28–29 April 2026 | Olympia London

Innovation Zero 2024 Main Stage

The Finance & Emerging Tech Forum focuses on the capital structures required to scale clean technologies from pilot to global deployment.

It directly addresses the “missing middle” between venture finance and infrastructure-scale capital.

This Forum brings together capital, innovators, buyers and policymakers to unlock bankable deployment.

Key topics will include:

Unlocking private capital for FOAK and emerging clean technologies.
Building high-integrity carbon markets
Scaling blended finance and innovative financial models
Investing in nature finance to build resilient, competitive supply chains
Creating policy frameworks that support financial innovation
Mobilising capital for emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs)

BOOK YOUR TICKET

Innovation Zero World | 28th & 29th April 2026 | Olympia London

Who will be in the room?

Venture, growth equity and infrastructure funds
Public sector finance and industrial policymakers
Founders and scale-up CEOs
CFOs and corporate finance leaders
Banks and development finance institutions
Corporate venture and strategic investors

Meet Our Confirmed Speakers

Innovation Zero is delighted to present a distinguished array of speakers for the Finance & Emerging Technology Forum, including keynote experts at the forefront of finance and investment.

VIEW ALL SPEAKERS

Why Attend the Finance & Emerging Technology Forum?

This forum provides a unique platform for finance professionals, policymakers, and corporate leaders to collaborate on creating a robust green finance ecosystem.

Attendees will gain valuable knowledge on unlocking capital, fostering innovation, and powering the future economy.

What Will You Learn?

How FOAK and NOAK projects are being financed
How technology risk and capital risk are being bridged
How procurement and offtake agreements are enabling bankability
What investors are backing now – and why
How public and private capital structures are being blended

The Finance & Emerging Technology Forum will examine how to unlock the capital required to support and accelerate the transition to a decarbonised global economy.

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Opening Remarks

Finance & Emerging Technology

09:30 – 09:40
Opening Keynote

Finance & Emerging Technology

09:40 – 09:55
Financing Heavy Industry’s Transition: Capital for Hard-to-Abate Sectors

Finance & Emerging Technology

10:00 – 10:45

Heavy industries such as steel, cement, and utilities are essential to the global economy but remain among the most carbon-intensive and hardest to decarbonise. Transitioning these sectors requires ma ...

Moderator

Paola Sáenz, Senior Research Associate - Sightline Climate (CTVC)

Confirmed Speakers

Caroline Ashley, Executive Director - SteelWatch

Irina Gorbounova, Vice President M&A and Head of Xcarb Innovation Fund - ArcelorMittal

Sophie Lu, Global Head of Heavy Industrial Decarbonisation - HSBC UK
Public Procurement as a Climate Tech Catalyst: Opening Doors for Innovation

Finance & Emerging Technology

10:55 – 11:40

Procurement is one of the most powerful yet underutilised levers for scaling climate technologies. However, for innovators and SMEs seeking to engage with the UK market, the current procurement landsc ...

Confirmed Speakers

Hannah Cool, Chief Operating Officer - B4NZ
Masader Presentation

Finance & Emerging Technology

11:50 – 12:10
Low-Carbon Flight: Unlocking Future Fuelling Solutions

Finance & Emerging Technology

12:15 – 13:00

Aviation accounts for 2-3% of global emissions, with the sector set to grow significantly over the coming decades. Sustainable aviation fuel and green hydrogen will be key to decarbonising the aviatio ...

Moderator

Andrew Chadwick, Director - Ventura System Solutions

Confirmed Speakers

Martin Atkins, CEO - Green Lizard Technologies

Jonathon Counsell, Group Sustainability Officer - International Airlines Group

Matthew Gorman, Director of Carbon Strategy - Heathrow Airport

Mahesh Roy, Programme Director, SAF - Green Finance Institute
Lunch Break

Finance & Emerging Technology

13:00 – 13:45
Adding Nature to the Balance Sheet

Finance & Emerging Technology

13:45 – 14:30

From forests and wetlands to oceans, nature underpins the stability, resilience, and prosperity of the global economy. Yet ongoing ecosystem degradation is driving rising risks across supply chains, b ...

Moderator

Charlie Dixon, Associate Director, Nature - Green Finance Institute

Confirmed Speakers

Robert Gardner, CEO & Co-Founder - Rebalance Earth

Nina Seega, Director, Centre for Sustainable Finance - Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership

Stuart Wainwright OBE, CEO - UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Unlocking CDR at Scale: The Role of Policy, Markets, and Demand

Finance & Emerging Technology

14:40 – 15:25

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions, from afforestation to carbon mineralisation, are critical to driving large-scale emissions reductions and achieving our low-carbon ambitions. The UK has a signi ...

Moderator

Ita Kettleborough, Director - Energy Transitions Commission

Confirmed Speakers

Georgia Berry, CDR Programme Director - Green Finance Institute

Carrie Harris, Director of Sustainability - British Airways

Jess Mackenzie, Head of Greenhouse Gas Removals Strategy - Department for Energy Security & Net Zero
Closing Remarks

Finance & Emerging Technology

15:25 – 15:35

BOOK YOUR TICKET

Innovation Zero World | 28th & 29th April 2026 | Olympia London

NatWest Stand IZ World 2024

Position your organisation at the centre of climate finance deployment.

IZ Exhibitor meeting

Showcase leadership in scaling emerging technologies.

Ed Miliband

Align with national investment and growth strategies.

Align

Access innovation deal flow and capital seeking deployment.

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