Challenging the insurance industry to "reinvent"

The Australian and New Zealand insurance industry has the capacity to 'reinvent' and is seen as a driving force behind the continued growth of the Australian and New Zealand economies.

Participants who attended the Swiss Re Knowledge Fair on 21 February had the opportunity to not only discuss the challenges facing the insurance industry but also share wider ideas on the industry's role in tackling global issues such as climate change.

The main panel discussion was led by ANZ Managing Director, Russell Higginbotham, Kerrie Kelly, Executive Director of the Insurance Council of Australia, and The Hon. Joe Tripodi, NSW Minister for Small Business and Regulatory Reform. The panel explored the idea that the world is becoming a 'riskier' place, with certain individuals, particularly Generation Y, challenging traditionally held ideas on who holds responsibility for these risks and to what extent personal responsibility needs to be taken.

Swiss Re CEO Jacques Aigrain spoke to the audience via a prerecorded message saying it is largely possible that this decade may be the 'era of the insurance industry'.

Prior to the main panel discussion, a number of technical sessions were held which covered some of the most pertinent topics within the industry including climate change, the group risk market, and investment guarantees.

The ReSource Award for Sustainable Watershed Management was presented at the conclusion of the Knowledge Fair to representatives of Solomon Islands winners, the Lauru Land Conference of Tribal Communities. The winning project, "Voices and Choices for the Chivoko Community" aims to secure 8,00 ha of Chivoko watershed forests and place them legally beyond the reach of industrial logging ventures.

Presentation downloads:

Rethinking group risk