Conservation Finance Intensive: Leveraging Climate for Nature Finance

The Intensive is a practical, cross-sector forum focused on how climate disclosure, standards and finance can be leveraged to unlock credible, investible nature outcomes.

This year’s theme, leveraging climate for nature finance, has been chosen for its potential to:

• Build on major momentum in Australia’s regulatory, standards and financing landscape, including Australian climate-risk disclosure requirements
• Reduce perceived burden for investors and corporates by demonstrating nature is an extension of existing processes, not creating something new from scratch
• Support the conservation sector to better engage with sources of capital by aligning projects, metrics, and propositions with corporate and investor needs
• Translate nature risk and opportunity into decision-relevant pathways, linking disclosure and standards to on-ground nature investment opportunities
• Demonstrate how Australia’s Sustainable Finance Taxonomy can direct capital into nature positive outcomes, including in agriculture, through a climate mitigation lens

Who should attend?

The Conservation Finance Intensive is designed for those in the public, private and philanthropic sectors who currently, or in the near future, have the potential to align conservation with capital by enabling, designing, funding, or delivering conservation at scale.

A defining feature of the Intensive is its curated and balanced, cross-sector audience, which provides opportunity for informed, solutions-focused discussion, and networking grounded in real-world context.

This year’s theme will specifically benefit participants from the:

Conservation sector (particularly First Nations or non-Indigenous nature project advisors or developers, environmental markets or nature finance practitioners, and corporate partnership developers or relationship managers). You will gain:

• A stronger understanding of how investors and corporates are approaching climate, risk, and capital allocation (and how nature fits into this)
• Practical insight into how climate frameworks can be leveraged to position nature projects for investment
• Greater clarity on what constitutes “investment-ready” nature opportunities from a private capital perspective
• Tools and language to engage more effectively with finance and corporate partners

Private sector and investors (including those in finance and responsible investment, climate strategy, reporting or delivery teams, sustainability leads, and finance, investment, or risk leads). You will gain:

• Practical guidance on integrating nature through climate-aligned processes, including disclosure and sustainable finance frameworks
• Insight into how nature projects and opportunities translate into credible investment propositions
• A clearer understanding of where investable nature opportunities are emerging, and what investors need to see to engage with them
• Exposure to applied use of metrics, taxonomies and market mechanisms that link climate and nature outcomes
• Direct engagement with conservation practitioners to understand delivery risks, timelines, and impact pathways

Public and philanthropic sectors (particularly those who oversee or otherwise influence policy settings, program or funding infrastructure). You will gain:

• Insight into where climate and nature enablers are supporting or constraining capital flows
• A clearer view of nature impact delivery challenges and opportunities
• Understanding of where catalytic public or philanthropic capital can unlock and scale private investment

What to expect

Morning sessions will be delivered by leaders in corporate sustainability, land conservation, responsible investment, corporate climate and nature disclosure, environmental markets, and sustainable finance and will focus on three key themes:

• Climate disclosure as a gateway for nature opportunity: Leveraging Australia’s climate-risk disclosure architecture to integrate nature
• Sustainable Finance Taxonomy to enable nature investment: Applying the Australian Sustainable Finance Institute’s criteria to enhance nature outcomes in agriculture via a carbon reduction lens
• Climate funding and finance to advance nature outcomes: Accessing climate finance and environment markets to support and scale nature outcomes

In-person participants will apply their understanding of these strategic climate enablers to then design practical nature-integrated finance pathways through an afternoon of facilitated workshops.

Building on ALCA’s Conservation Finance Handbook, the program will showcase real-world case studies and emphasise the vital leadership role of First Nations peoples, with a strong focus on practical learning and collaboration.

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Ticketing options

*The 2026 Conservation Finance Intensive is a formal side event of the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) Conference. RIAA conference ticket holders can access discounted registration for the ALCA Conservation Finance Intensive. Both events will be held in Melbourne, with the Finance Intensive on 26th May and the RIAA Conference on 27-28th May, offering a fantastic opportunity to maximise professional and technicaldevelopment, and cross-sector collaboration. Proof of RIAA registration is required to access the discount, and ALCA reserves the right to cancel registrations where misuse has occurred.

** Through ALCA’s First Nations Access and Engagement Strategy, funding is available to support First Nations individuals to attend the Conservation Finance Intensive. Funding can be fully inclusive to cover:

• domestic economy return flights to Melbourne;
• airport transfers to / from the hotel (or alternative transportation costs for return travel if flights are not required e.g. car hire / parking / fuel reimbursement, public transport)
• up to two nights of accommodation
• all meals; and
• complimentary registration to the Conservation Finance Intensive.
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This funding is available to support First Nations people only. To express interest, please contact Phoebe Pace via phone (0403 143 173) or email (phoebe@alca.org.au).

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