The health, sustainability and stability of our economy is inextricably linked with the health, sustainability and stability of our people, society and the natural systems on which we all depend.

Our Work

For Australia to continue to prosper in the 21st century we need to realign the systems that underpin our economy to support human well-being, social equity and our environment.

Australia has demonstrated its commitment through ratification of the Paris Agreement on climate change, the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as long-standing commitments to uphold UN human rights obligations and other relevant international conventions.

To deliver on these commitments, while meeting the expectations of Australians now and into the future, we need a financial system that is aligned with these commitments.

Globally, momentum is building to better align finance with our sustainable development needs. Countries and regions around the world are setting out Sustainable Finance Roadmaps that provide pathways and policy signals and set frameworks to enable the finance sector to contribute more systematically to the transition to a more resilient and sustainable economy, consistent with these global goals.

Our work is modelled on the work and progress made internationally to align the finance sector with the goals of a resilient and sustainable economy, including the European Union’s High Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance and the UK’s Green Finance Taskforce.

Theory of Change

ASFI leads change across the financial services system by driving initiatives, convening cross-sector collaborations, connecting across organisations to drive Roadmap implementation, and enabling people and organisations to navigate the rapidly evolving field of sustainable finance. 

ASFI supports Australia’s financial system participants to work together to develop and implement initiatives to transform finance through policy and regulation; tools and frameworks; leadership and capability, and new products and partnerships. 

This work enables more capital to flow to activities, companies, assets, and communities to accelerate the transition to a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive Australia, so that the financial system supports a sustainable, resilient, and prosperous future for all Australians. 

ASFI’s 2024 Work Program

  • Enabling Sustainable Finance

    A supportive policy and regulatory environment is an essential foundation for the growth and credibility of sustainable finance. Tools and frameworks that are applicable industry-wide to guide capital to opportunities that will achieve sustainable outcomes, as well as supportive policy and regulation were identified in the Roadmap as critical enablers for sustainable finance in Australia. This pillar of ASFI’s work includes the continuation and evolution of a number of 2022 and 2023 priorities, centred around convening strong industry and expert engagement with the Australian Government on the development and implementation of their Sustainable Finance Strategy.

    Key areas of this work include:

  • Finance Sector Leadership

    The Roadmap highlights the critical role of leadership from the finance sector to unlock progress towards Australia’s climate, environment and social inclusion ambitions. This pillar of work supports and encourages stronger leadership from financial institutions and seeks to overcome some of the systemic challenges, such as capability, that prevent the finance sector making more progress towards Roadmap implementation.

    Key areas of this work are:

    You can learn more about our leadership work here.

  • Natural Capital

    There is growing recognition of the dependence and impacts of economic activity on our natural environment, including on biodiversity and natural ecosystems. The Roadmap recognises the importance of natural capital to a resilient and sustainable economy and a number of recommendations focus on supporting the finance sector to recognise, value and incorporate natural capital into capital allocation decisions and risks analysis.

    Further information about our natural capital program of work is available here.

  • First Nations and Finance

    The Roadmap includes a number of recommendations to support meaningful engagement between financial system participants and Indigenous Peoples, support self-determination, particularly by implementing free, prior and informed consent and improving financial outcomes for Indigenous Australians. The focus of ASFI’s work in this area is on systems level changes in the financial system and with an institutional rather than retail finance focus. During 2024, ASFI will continue to grow this area of work by focusing on improving disclosures of First Nations impacts and outcomes by corporates and financial institutions, elevating First Nations perspectives into sustainable finance, and through policy and regulator engagement to enable success.

    Learn more here.

  • Sustainable Finance Solutions

    Building sustainable finance markets requires a supportive policy and regulatory environment, however the growth and credibility of markets and the deployment of capital towards solutions can be accelerated through the development of new structures, products and market infrastructure, as highlighted in the Roadmap. This area of work seeks to rapidly accelerate capital flow towards sustainability solutions, achieving sustainability outcomes and demonstrating the commercial value of these approaches.

Read ASFI’s 2024 Strategy

and Business Plan