circular business models, managing related risks and exploring opportunities, such as the redesign and manufacturing process of products and services, digital solutions, waste management models, etc. at the moment though, financial institutions lack awareness of circularity and still need to develop expertise, products and services to harness opportunities. of course, there is also an important role for governments and policy makers that need to provide incentives, policies and frameworks in order to integrate circularity into financial products and services alongside current planning for the transition to a carbon neutral economy. there is no question that climate change is today one of the most pressing sustainability challenges we are currently facing. in this context, the process of addressing climate change can undoubtedly be accelerated if established growth models are adjusted in order to ensure long - term sustainability. it is therefore important in tackling climate change to plan for a double transition, to a carbon neutral and circular economy. in this double transition, there are indeed certain risks. for example, transition risks as assets may become stranded or businesses that may incur costs and disruptions. yet, a careful and timely transition will also open up opportunities, associated with innovation and new technologies, circular and renewable energy products, new processes, new infrastructure and new jobs. although methodologies for calculating climate - related risks are still being developed, estimates suggest that the impact of these risks is likely to be significant. for example, the ecb has estimated that, on average, 15 % of significant institutions ’ exposures are to the most carbon - intensive firms and an abrupt transition to a low - carbon economy could have severe impact on climate - sensitive economic sectors. [ 3 ] regarding physical risks, around 30 % of the credit exposures of euro area banks are to businesses with high or increasing exposure to at least one source of physical risk. in this context, central banks and supervisors are progressively looking into playing an active role in the debate and working with banks to prepare for and manage climate risks. indeed, as part of the strategy review the ecb is already exploring ways of taking the risk of climate change into account. it is clear however that since climate change poses risks to price stability, central banks could, within their traditional mandate, advance their efforts to support the transition to a sustainable economy and a resilient future. central banks can help by considering how the physical and transition impact of climate change can be included in macroeconomic forecasting and financial stability monitoring. also, central banks can help by integrating climate - related risks into prude

the global response required to meet the goals of the paris agreement and the enhancement of the role of the financial system in managing risks and mobilising capital for an environmentally sustainable development. at his point, i would also like to stress out the importance of resilience. towards a sustainable and resilient future, scientific research and current developments confirm the need for a strategy and an action plan, spanning across multiple economic, social and environmental policy areas, to adapt to the changing climate. climate change adaptation, as a process of adjusting to the climate impact in order to moderate the negative and enhance the potential positive effects of climate change is a crucial issue that promotes the resilience of our societies. on fostering climate change adaptation, we are currently working, under the coordination of the hellenic ministry of environment and energy and alongside key national actors, on the life ip adaptingr, a programme that aims to guide the implementation of the national climate change adaptation strategy, with the overarching objective to strengthen the greece ’ s resilience to the impact of climate change. the world today has an opportunity to build back better by embracing a greener pathway to covid - 19 recovery. one key structural change is to achieve this is by adopting circular economy approaches. to the question, “ are we building back better? ” the answer is : not yet. [ 11 ] over the next months and possibly years, it is estimated that countries will invest over $ 20 trillion to recover from the fallout of covid - 19. [ 12 ] these financial and investment decisions will determine to a great extent the future of our societies and our ability to respond to the environmental challenges that the world is already facing today. the pandemic recovery effort presents an excellent opportunity to reboot the economy, re - think, reskill and re - design a more inclusive, sustainable, circular and carbon neutral development pathway, aligned with the un agenda, the sdgs and the paris agreement. this is an opportunity we cannot afford to miss. thank you. [ 1 ] https : / / www. overshootday. org [ 2 ] according to unep and accenture, see more at https : / / www. unepfi. org / publications / generalpublications / financing - circularity / [ 3 ] keynote speech by andrea enria, chair of the supervisory board of the ecb, at the european central bank climate and environmental risks webinar, frankfurt am main, 17 june 2020, https