Virtual Workshop: “The Role of Insurance in Climate Change Adaptation: Current Practices and Future Challenges”
25/06/2026 - Press Releases
- The workshop addressed topics related to the insurance protection gap, claims data arising from natural disasters and an analysis of the domestic insurance market regarding the challenges and opportunities stemming from climate change.
- It is the third in a series of workshops, under the LIFE-IP AdaptInGR project.
The Bank of Greece, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Green Fund, organised on Wednesday, 24 June 2026, a workshop on “The Role of Insurance in Climate Change Adaptation: Current Practices and Future Challenges”, which constitutes the third part in a dedicated series of workshops.
In Europe, the impact of climate change is increasingly evident. Since the 1980s, the continent has been warming around twice as fast as the global average, while heatwaves, extreme rainfall, floods, droughts and wildfires are placing growing pressure on societies, ecosystems and economic activity. As natural catastrophes become more frequent and severe, they pose substantial economic and social challenges across Europe. At the same time, insurance coverage for such events remains insufficient in many countries, leaving households, businesses and public authorities exposed to financial losses and making recovery after disasters more challenging.
Organised by the Bank of Greece, this series of workshops, under the LIFE-IP AdaptInGR project, aims to advance financing for climate change adaptation and highlight its significance. During the first workshop, the participants discussed the key role of the financial sector and the importance of synergies among stakeholders in promoting the financing of climate change adaptation. The second workshop focused on specific frameworks that are used for the purposes of adaptation financing, as well as on case studies from the financial system, providing practical insights and actionable strategies for an effective financing of climate change adaptation.
Yesterday’s third workshop addressed topics related to the insurance protection gap in Greece and Europe, claims data arising from natural disasters associated with climate change in Greece as well as an analysis of the domestic insurance market regarding the challenges and opportunities stemming from climate change. It also featured the presentation of good practices, case studies and relevant insurance products and schemes developed by the private sector in Greece and abroad.
Participants included:
- Theodore Pelagidis, Deputy Governor, Bank of Greece
- Stavros Konstantas, Director, Occupational and Private Insurance Supervision Directorate, Bank of Greece
- Tilman Lueder, Head of Insurance and Pensions, DG FISMA, European Commission
- Petros Kampouris, Secretary General for Natural Disaster Recovery and State Support, Ministry for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection
- Elina Papaspyropoulou, Director General, Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies
- Carlos Guiné, Head of Horizontal Unit of Sustainability, EIOPA
- Angelos Plataniotis, Occupational and Private Insurance Supervision Directorate, Bank of Greece
- Christos Papagiannis, Head of Insurance and Aid Policy Department, Hellenic Organization of Agricultural Insurance
- Nicolas Jeanmart, Head of Personal and General Insurance, Insurance Europe
- Amar Rahman, Global Head of Climate Resilience, Zurich Resilience Solutions Commercial Insurance
- Jonathan Kassian, Head of Research, Flood Re
- Kelly Chatzidimitriou, Director of Legal and International Affairs, Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies
The workshop was moderated by Theodora Antonakaki, Director of the Climate Change and Sustainability Centre of the Bank of Greece.
Related link:
You can watch the workshop by clicking here.