Communications Strategy for a Global Financial Initiative

The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a strategic public-private partnership between UNEP and the global financial sector, with a mission to support sustainable finance. Junxion was engaged to develop the global communications strategy for their newly launched Principles for Responsible Banking.

The UNEP FI brings together more than 230 financial institutions including banks, insurers and investors. Based on experience establishing sustainability principles for both the investment and insurance sectors, it was clear to UNEP FI that the banking sector could benefit from its own set of principles: the accelerating green transformation of the world’s economies, and changes in consumption and societal expectations are demanding banks rethink their business models.

A group of 28 member banks including Barclays Bank, ING and our client Nordea, took leadership in their development. The Principles offer banks strategic guidance on aligning with society’s goals, as expressed in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement.

How We Helped

Junxion worked with the 28 founding banks and UNEP FI’s banking team to develop a communications strategy that every organization could apply in its own context. Starting from a coalition-building approach and extending to development of the overarching narrative about the Principles, value propositions, and key messages, we established the main channels and approaches for communication.

By the time of the official launch, not only were there dozens of stakeholders endorsing the Principles, there were 130 banks – representing a third of the global banking sector – signed up and committed to aligning their business strategies with the Principles of Responsible Banking.