Where to Find AFF at New York Climate Week
New York Climate Week is the largest and oldest of the international climate weeks.
From September 20–27, AFF leaders and experts will be in the Big Apple to join the climate community in tackling our biggest challenges, highlighting the importance of family-owned forests in caring for our natural landscapes and discussing innovative solutions to scale natural climate solutions. Reach out if you'd like to connect on the ground.
AFF Team Members Present at NYCW
IETA North America Climate Summit
The North America Climate Summit (NACS) 2026 is the final regional climate summit organized by the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) before COP 31, providing a forum to discuss innovations and insights in the carbon market.
AFF is a platinum sponsor of IETA’s NACS this year. Register for the summit here.
- Join our official side event on Tuesday, September 22 from 1-2pm ET, which will cover the intersection of policy and demand around managing durability risk.
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Join NACS’s main programming breakout on scaling nature investment on Wednesday, September 23 from 3:40-4:40pm ET, where AFF president & CEO Rita Hite will join the panel of experts.
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Stop by AFF’s counter from 9 am–5 pm ET on Tue, Sept 22, and Weds, Sept 23 to learn more about our work in empowering family forest owners to deliver meaningful conservation impact.
The Nature Hub
The Nature Hub is Nature4Climate’s main convening space at major global conferences, bringing together business, policymakers, scientists and civil society to spark collaboration and showcase solutions that work.
AFF is excited to have experts speaking at several sessions throughout the day. Registration will open soon here.
The Sorenson Impact Natural Capital Summit
The Sorenson Impact Institute is hosting a full-day convening on innovative nature finance, bringing together the investors, innovators, and conservationists working to close the nature funding gap.
On Weds, Sept 23, AFF will co-host the following panel discussion:
Beyond Carbon: Financing Water, Health, Biodiversity and Economic Outcomes of Carbon Projects
Carbon projects hold untapped potential to generate measurable value far beyond basic offset credits. By placing watershed health, community wellness, biodiversity conservation, and local economic resilience at the center of the strategy, this session aims to create an open dialogue between funders, academics, non-profits, and practitioners on how to realize the full potential of these emerging pathways. Join us to discover the varied perspectives of contributors navigating this space and participate in a collaborative conversation about aligning impact capital with the holistic outcomes of nature-based solutions.
This is a closed-door event. You may register your interest here.
Forests for Climate: CWNYC Networking Happy Hour
Join AFF, the Forest Stewardship Council, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, and American Carbon Registry for an evening to connect with forestry community peers and unwind with drinks and small bites from 5:30–7:30 pm ET on Tue, Sept 22. Register here.
Events Calendar
Tuesday, September 22
10:30 AM –12:30 PM
Location: Doris Duke Treehouse
AFF Executive Vice President of Carbon Origination Christine Cadigan joins the American Bird Conservancy for a conversation on wood fiber markets.
Working forests are among the country’s most important natural climate solutions, but key markets are declining and landowners face increasing financial pressure to convert timberlands into more profitable uses, including solar, wind, data centers, and other forms of development. Our proposed event is an approximately two overview presentations, followed by a panel discussion with representatives from American Bird Conservancy, a fiber-based products producer, forest landowners, and a market representative from a nature-based solutions organization. The discussion will be aimed at examining how weakening wood fiber markets can unintentionally undermine forest retention, rural economies, biodiversity, and climate outcomes. We will focus on practical strategies that better align climate-smart forestry, conservation finance, and critical wood markets so private landowners can continue managing forests for carbon storage, wildlife habitat, economic resilience, and long-term conservation.
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location: Bryant Park Area
AFF Senior Director of Environmental Markets and Climate Finance John Ringer is joining Terraformation for a discussion on accelerating the pace and scale of reforestation.
1:00 – 2:00 pm ET
Location: IETA NACS
AFF Executive Vice President of Carbon Origination Christine Cadigan joins IETA for a discussion on boosting market demand.
From voluntary commitments to compliance regulations, countries and companies are increasingly looking to the carbon market to meet their climate goals. We will discuss the mechanisms needed to empower carbon projects and credit buyers to meet emerging durability standards and current efforts to integrate durability risk management into policy frameworks.
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: 37 W 20th Street, NY, NY
AFF EVP of Business Innovation joins FSC and SFI for a networking event for climate leaders and change makers.
Wednesday, September 23
11:15 AM –12:30 PM
Location: Yale Club, Midtown Manhattan
AFF EVP of Climate Funding Nate Truitt joins the Sorenson Impact Institute and Michelin for a discussion on a new report outlining the co-benefits generated by family forests.
1:10 PM - 2:05 PM
Location: KPMG Headquarters, 2 Manhattan West
AFF Executive Vice President of Carbon Origination Chrisitine Cadigan joins N4C, SHIFT-CM (TNC + Audubon), Beyond Alliance, Arbor Day Foundation and WBCSD for a discussion on the evolution of carbon markets.
Carbon markets have faced years of scrutiny over issues related to integrity, transparency and impact. Meanwhile a set of innovations has emerged to answer some of the market's most stubborn problems. This session moves past whether carbon markets should exist and asks something more useful: what is improving, what is working both in terms of how we manage risk and unlock opportunity, and what still has to happen for confidence and scale to follow?
2:40 PM – 3:40 PM
Location: Convene 360 Madison
AFF CEO & President Rita Hite joins IETA for a discussion on permanence.
Continued discourse around durability and integrity is impacting policy formation and market dynamics for nature-based reductions and removals. This panel will provide insight into the current landscape across policies, markets, and emerging models that bridge the durability gap like permanence trusts, contracted durability, and new insurance products – assessing where we are and what we still need.
2:50 PM - 3:45 PM
Location: KPMG Headquarters, Manhattan
AFF EVP of Business Generation joins FSC, ACR, Weyerhaeuser, TPL, AFF, Arbor Day Foundation, and ART for a discussion on nature finance.
As wildfire risk grows and demands on forests continue to expand, the challenge is no longer simply - recognize that America’s economy depends on healthy ecosystems , but determining how to finance its forests' survival . This discussion will explore the emerging mix of market-based and public funding approaches that can support long-term forest stewardship, resilience, and conservation across the United States. Panelists will examine how carbon markets, sustainable forest products, certification systems, innovative financing mechanisms, and locally generated public funding can work together to create a more durable and diversified funding stack for healthy forests and the communities that depend on them.
Thursday, September 24
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Location: 2 Park Ave
AFF CEO and President Rita Hite will join the VCM+ Coalition for a moderated discussion on permanence in carbon markets between leading thinkers in engineered removals, nature-based solutions, and atmospheric science, followed by an audience Q&A.
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Location: NTT Data Launch Office, 101 5th Avenue, Floor 10, New York, NY 10003
AFF EVP of Climate Funding Nathan Truitt joins WBCSD to discuss how investing in family forests can generate benefits for the environment, community, and economy.