Climate adaptation and resilience investment virtual roundtable: Key themes and takeaways

On February 24, 2023, a virtual roundtable discussion was convened and moderated by the James E. Rogers Energy Access Project at Duke University. The purpose of the discussion was to bring together public and private climate investors, executives from small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in certain low- carbon agriculture value chains, and key ecosystem actors to reflect on how the adaptation and resilience (A&R) impacts of business models play a role in climate investment decision making currently and where research capacity should be focused to build certainty around A&R impacts to mobilize additional investment. The event reviewed approaches and rationales that investors and firms currently use for measuring and integrating impact. It laid out a case study for how solar irrigation company SunCulture considers impact in its operations and how an upcoming Duke-led impact evaluation will support a more rigorous understanding of A&R benefits delivered by SunCulture and the sector more broadly. This document summarizes key points of discussion and takeaways.