Resilience and Retreat: What Insurability Tells Us About Climate Risk

Hear from Rowan Douglas CBE, CEO of Climate Risk and Resilience at Howden Group, as we explore the vital role of insurance in the climate transition.

When we talk about climate resilience, insurance often flies under the radar. But it’s one of the oldest and most powerful tools we have for managing risk: pooling resources, spreading losses, and crucially, sending signals about where risk is growing too great to bear.

That’s why in this episode, we explore the vital and evolving role of insurance in supporting climate resilience. We discuss:

• How insurance acts as both a safety net for businesses and communities, and a driver of risk reduction and adaptation;
• The concept of “insurability,” and what it reveals about our growing exposure to climate risk; and
• How these dynamics are playing out in the real world, through a case study of climate risks facing Europe’s agricultural sector.

To find out more about the Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR®) Certificate, follow this link: https://www.garp.org/scr

For more information on climate risk, visit GARP’s Global Sustainability and Climate Risk Resource Center: https://www.garp.org/sustainability-climate

If you have any questions, thoughts, or feedback regarding this podcast series, we would love to hear from you at: climateriskpodcast@garp.com

Links from today’s discussion:

• Ex-CEO of Allianz Investment Management Günther Thallinger - “The math breaks down” quote: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/climate-risk-insurance-future-capitalism-g%C3%BCnther-thallinger-smw5f/
• GARP Natural Catastrophe Modelling Masterclass (for SCR® Certificate Holders): https://www.garp.org/scr/catastrophe-modeling-masterclass
• The Insurability Imperative: Using Insurance to Navigate the Climate Transition: https://www.howdengroup.com/uk-en/insurability-climate-report-2025
• Insurance and Risk Management Tools for Agriculture in the EU: https://www.howdengroupholdings.com/news/eu-agriculture-faces-28-billion-annual-average-loss-from-extreme-weather
• Video summary of Insurance and Risk Management Tools for Agriculture in the EU report: https://www.fi-compass.eu/videos/interviews/insurance-and-access-finance-farm-resilience-and-adaptation-eu

Speaker’s Bio

Rowan Douglas CBE, CEO Climate Risk and Resilience, Howden Group

Prior to joining Howden, Rowan held a number of senior roles at Willis Towers Watson, including as Head of their Climate and Resilience Hub, and also at Willis Re, where he was CEO of Global Analytics. Until recently, he was also Chair of the Operating Committee of the Insurance Development Forum, a role he began in 2015, which focused on driving resilience in communities, business, and public institutions through insurance.

Rowan holds a Bachelor’s in Geography from Durham University, and an MPhil in Geographical Sciences from the University of Bristol.