The Oxford Sustainable Finance Group, the Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery and FinBio, are hosting a lecture by Ruth Davis OBE, the UK Special Representative for Nature. The lecture will take place at 5.00 pm on Friday 3 October 2025 at Trinity College, Oxford, and will be followed by a drinks reception.

Nature is fundamental to climate stability, food security, public health, and economic resilience. With COP30 taking place in Belém, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025, this is a pivotal moment to align climate and nature action, including delivery of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the global 30 by 30 target. The UK has committed to protect at least 30% of land and sea by 2030, making nature recovery a clear national priority.

Ruth Davis was appointed the UK’s first Special Representative for Nature in 2024. She brings more than two decades of experience leading policy and campaigns and she advised the UK Government on the COP26 nature campaign. In her current role she supports ministers through senior diplomatic engagement on nature and reports to the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

This will be a timely opportunity to hear directly from Ruth on the UK Government’s international priorities for nature ahead of COP30 and following UN General Assembly week, and to discuss how academia, finance, and civil society can help deliver credible pathways for nature recovery.

Please apply to attend by completing this short form. The deadline is Friday 19 September. Places are limited and early expressions of interest are encouraged.