Marloes

Sustainable Finance Officer

Sustainability touches on everything

"I enjoy my job immensely. It touches all aspects of the work DNB does. From supervision and payment systems, to asset management and economic research. I made a conscious choice for DNB because you have so much influence here. I started as a trainee. I worked in three positions in two years and was able to work on sustainability throughout. First in Supervision, where we looked at banks’ sustainability policies. If climate change or environmental degradation leads to material risks, banks need to have a strategy in place to deal with those risks using the right risk management tools and governance. I then moved to Reserve Management: the team responsible for aligning our own-account investments with the Paris Climate Agreement. My third position was in the Sustainable Finance Office, DNB’s sustainability hub, where I still am today.

Integrated management of climate and environmental risks

In our supervisory role, we do what we can to help institutions with their sustainability policies. For instance, I drafted the “Guide to managing climate and environmental risks” with colleagues from different teams. The Guide provides institutions with tools to manage risks associated with climate and the environment. It also contains practical examples. We also use the Guide in our supervisory activities to assess the current state of risk management in the sector. We feel it is important to engage with the sector, for example in a recent session we organised for insurers. Very enjoyable and worthwhile!

This network of 129 central banks and financial supervisors aims to green the financial system and strengthen.

Helping the Netherlands become more sustainable in a responsible way

Contact with stakeholders is very important to us, and we engage with a wide range of parties, from representatives from the financial sector and policymakers, to sustainability experts and NGOs. Engagement activities include Round Tables on our sustainability strategy, and inviting external parties such as climate scientists, specialists in ESG ratings, biodiversity, or data to join in knowledge sessions. Very worthwile because they offer new perspectives and food for thought based on their expertise. We also meet with sustainability experts from various DNB departments to share and increase our knowledge. We also operate internationally, for instance in the Network for Greening the Financial System, or NGFS. This network of 129 central banks and financial supervisors aims to green the financial system and strengthen the efforts being put forth by the financial sector to achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. Because our department is relatively small – just five people and a programme director – I have a hand in almost everything. And I make a tangible contribution to making the Netherlands sustainable in a responsible way."