I was invited to attend and participate in this conference in Edinburgh. The event supporters were Her Majesty’s Government, Royal Bank of Scotland, Scottish Government & United Nations Development Programme. The aim of the conference was to explore how trust in a sustainable economy can be revitalised. I was invited to take part in a panel discussion exploring ‘Aligning investments with values’ and as panel members we represent the Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths. This was part of a wider conversation about the values we bring to making ethical decisions about sustainable funding and our responsibility to our planet and all its inhabitants. Much reference was made to the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals during the conversations and discussions. (more info re conference here)
During the conference the Edinburgh Finance Declaration, which is a Shared Values Framework for Ethical Finance was launched. This Declaration has been developed over the past two years through a number of workshops and round table discussion. It began on the 22nd March 2016 when the Church of Scotland and the Islamic Finance Council UK signed a partnership agreement to co-develop an ethical finance solution open to all society, regardless of race, religion or ethnic background and based on the shared values between the faith traditions. The result was the Edinburgh Finance Declaration, whose launch was celebrated over a dinner hosted by Greyfriars Kirk with participants from the conference and local faith groups, including participants from across the UK, Malaysia, America, Nigeria, Germany, Netherlands and Dubai.
It is hoped that in 2019 we will in partnership with Islamic Finance Council UK launch the Edinburgh Finance Declaration in London. Watch this space!!! Sign up to our newsletter the link can be found on the homepage of our website.
Meanwhile for more information about the Edinburgh Finance Declaration
