EDHEC Climate Institute Shares Key Innovations on Sustainable Infrastructure at FIDIC Global Leadership Forum Summit
On April 10, 2025, Rob Arnold, Sustainability Research Director, and Camille Angué, Deputy Director in Charge of Outreach, represented the EDHEC Climate Institute at the third annual FIDIC Global Leadership Forum Summit in Madrid. This high-level gathering of 100 senior leaders from the global infrastructure sector brought together executives across government, finance, engineering, and academia to accelerate discussions on climate, technology, and workforce transformation in infrastructure.
Accelerating the Shift to Climate-Resilient Infrastructure
Held at the Thompson Madrid by Hyatt, the 2025 GLF Summit spotlighted the urgency of sustainability, digital transformation, and skills development. As a research partner of the summit, the EDHEC Climate Institute took center stage during the “Industry Research” session, where it presented pioneering tools designed to support a low-carbon, climate-resilient infrastructure future.
Research in Focus: Future-Proofing Infrastructure with Data
As part of the “Industry Research” session, Rob Arnold and Camille Angué, participated in a panel alongside the ACEC Research Institute and delivered a dedicated presentation introducing two flagship initiatives: the ClimaTech project and the ClimaTech database.
- Transition risks, linked to regulatory shifts, market changes, and decarbonisation efforts.
- Physical risks, stemming from increasing exposure to extreme climate events such as flooding, wildfires, storms, and heatwaves.
They noted that despite growing awareness of climate threats, many infrastructure investors and operators still lack the tools to link mitigation strategies to measurable outcomes, assess residual risks, or benchmark the effectiveness of their actions. The ClimaTech database—developed by EDHEC—addresses this gap by providing the world’s most comprehensive resource for comparing the cost-effectiveness and feasibility of both decarbonisation and resilience strategies across 101 infrastructure subclasses.
They noted that despite growing awareness of climate threats, many infrastructure investors and operators still lack the tools to link mitigation strategies to measurable outcomes, assess residual risks, or benchmark the effectiveness of their actions. The ClimaTech database—developed by EDHEC—addresses this gap by providing the world’s most comprehensive resource for comparing the cost-effectiveness and feasibility of both decarbonisation and resilience strategies across 101 infrastructure subclasses..
“Systematically integrating climate risk and resilience into infrastructure planning is increasingly necessary—not only to meet decarbonisation goals, but to ensure the long-term viability of essential services in the face of environmental and financial shocks. Our database equips stakeholders with actionable insights to help infrastructure assets adapt and thrive in a low-carbon, climate-resilient future.”, says Rob Arnold, Sustainability Research Director.
“Defining guidelines and a methodology for the industry is a good thing, and we are keen to work with FIDIC in this direction, particularly as part of the Carbon Collaboration project. The next step will be to find ways of making institutions and banks aware of and adopting these standards. Public and private clients need to take them into account in their specifications and in the financing they provide.”, says Camille Angué, Deputy Director in Charge of Outreach.
Driving the Dialogue Forward
The EDHEC Climate Institute’s participation in the FIDIC Global Leadership Forum Summit highlights its ongoing contribution to climate-aligned infrastructure planning through data-driven, scientifically reviewed research. At the core of its work, the ClimaTech project provides the world’s most comprehensive database of decarbonisation and resilience strategies for infrastructure assets—enabling asset managers, investors, and public authorities to quantify climate risks, evaluate mitigation options, and align infrastructure portfolios with transition and adaptation goals. As regulatory pressures and physical climate threats intensify, ClimaTech offers a decision-grade resource to support prioritisation, risk analysis, and evidence-based validation of corporate commitments.
- For more information on EDHEC Climate Institute's research programme on Resilience and Transition Tech, visit this page
- To read ECI's latest article “Technological Solutions to Mitigate Transition and Physical Risks”, click here
