Neha Kumar
Head of South Asia Programmes, Climate Bonds Initiative
Neha serves as India Programme Manager at Climate Bonds, driving policy and partner programs in the country to scale up the green bonds market, and supports advocacy with the media, investors, and the government. Neha has over fourteen years of experience working on public policy and industry action in India on sustainability and responsible financing. In her stint at GIZ India, she steered projects that led to regulation on ESG disclosures by the Indian market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, and the development of financial sector-led Responsible Financing Guidelines. She was also responsible for conceptualizing and overseeing successful Indo-German public-private alliances, EU co-financing grants, and building multi-stakeholder alliances on mainstreaming sustainability practices in large and small businesses. Prior to that, she consulted national and international businesses on environmental and political risks in extractive and infrastructure sectors, with operations and investments spread across India. She has served on national and internationalstandard-setting bodies like the Bureau of Indian Standards and Global Reporting Initiative,e where she vice-chaired its Stakeholder Council. She is part of a core group of policy advisors and practitioners on the future of jobs and green economy hosted by Frederich Ebert Stiftung, India, and an active alumna of Young Global Leaders chosen by the Bucerius-Zeit Foundation of Germany.