The power of philanthropic capital lies in its catalytic nature, says CEO of Philanthropy Asia Alliance (PAA) Shaun Seow.

Synopsis: Every first and third Tuesday of the month, The Straits Times analyses the beat of the changing environment, from biodiversity conservation to climate change.

The world is becoming an increasingly risky place as the impacts of climate change and nature loss worsen. And there’s a growing need for more funding to limit the damage and improve the livelihoods of communities.

But the problem is, funding from governments, especially aid money, is drying up in some places. The funding gap is huge but philanthropy is helping fill some of the void. Family offices, international foundations, wealthy individuals and more are stepping in and their money is vital in helping de-risk climate and nature investments to make them more palatable for private and government funders.

Every dollar of philanthropic capital can mobilise $9 of additional funding. Together, the money can be directed towards vital areas, such as ocean health and coastal protection, sustainable land use, nature restoration and climate adaptation and much more.

The end game is not band aid solutions, Shaun Seow, CEO of Philanthropy Asia Alliance, tells Audrey Tan and David Fogarty in this latest episode of Green Pulse. The end game is to de-risk and allow private capital to “work its magic”.