Vancouver Conference 2012

Making a Difference, by being a Reference – Vancouver 2012

The GABV’s fourth annual meeting, which took place in Vancouver from 7 – 10 March, marked a major milestone in the development of the sustainable banking movement.

Hosted by Vancity, Canada’s largest community credit union, the meeting helped to develop impact measures to better demonstrate the results of the sustainable banking industry’s work; and build an international exchange programme for the next generation of sustainable bankers.

As well as the fifteen members of the network meeting to progress this work, the four day event included:

• an evening of dialogue and debate for the public, with Canadian journalist and author Naomi Klein, UK-based New Economics Foundation Executive Director Stewart Wallis, and Vancity CEO Tamara Vrooman
• a special event with the Vancouver business community to make the business case for values-based banking
• and the publication of the results of a major piece of research, financed by the Rockefeller Foundation, which analyses the relative performance of sustainable banks and some of the world’s largest and most influential banks.

The event came at a crucial time as the governments, banks, and civic society struggled to reconcile growing inequality in the economy, society and the environment.

The pioneers of some of the world’s most progressive banks plan to provide ideas that move the financial industry beyond the economic crisis to a more effective, equitable and environmentally responsible form of capitalism.