Actuarial Congress 2022 - Sustainability

The 7th of March at 9:00 O’clock in the morning it was finally time for the VSAE to host the 22nd edition of the Actuarialcongress. After 2 years of hosting the congress online it was more than a pleasure to be able to welcome everybody in the Royal Tropical Institute, located in Amsterdam.

The prominent Marble Lobby of the Royal Tropical Institute was filled in no time with the top of the Actuarial world. Hosting the  Actuarialcongress is a 22 year old tradition of the VSAE. Actuaries from all over the Benelux travel to Amsterdam to be able to participate in this prestigious congress.

Proud to be able to take part of this day as chairman of the Actuarialcongress, I welcomed everybody. Now the day was set to start off. Thereafter the chairman of the day, Jeroen Breen, was called to the stage. For the past 11 years Jeroen has been an incredible asset to the Actuarialcongress. With his charms and knowledge Jeroen is able to shed light on relevant topics for Actuaries. This is exactly what he did this year. He announced the proudly chosen topic of the year, sustainability, and immediately grabbed everybody’s attention. The main question of the day was; ‘How can you contribute?’ It was this question in combination with the theme that connected the sessions of the speakers and made room for discussion.   

Now it was time for the first plenary speaker of the day, Fleur Rieter.  She shared her view and vision on sustainability for actuaries on an individual and social level. Fleur went into detail about how the company she is working for is contributing to sustainability by diving into the question; How to go from policy to accountability? Lastly, Fleur talked about her personal contributions to the environment. She did this in a jokingly manner making the audience feel connect to her and the main question: “How can you contribute?”

Thereafter, it was time for the duo Ted van de Aalst and Michel Evers from KPMG to take the stage. Unfortunately, Ted had to attend the congress online but this did not withhold him from making this plenary session an interesting one. The combination of Ted, a top notch actuarial scientist, and Michel, an expert on sustainability created an utterly interesting session. Whilst Michel focused on climate change and the certain scenarios this risk brings along, Ted gave an insight into the actuarial aspect.

Following the two plenary sessions was a networking lunch. At the congress students are also able to participate therefore the lunch is a great opportunity for the students to connect with the working actuarial scientists.

Afterwards it was time for the first 4 interactive sessions. As a participant you are able to attend a session which is to your liking. During these interactive sessions you are included in the discussion. Which results into intriguing conversations between the audience and the speaker

Next up was  Bouke Evers and Marc van Houdt from EY. Bouke is responsible for Sustainable Finance within EY FSO Consulting for all Dutch financial institutions making him an asset to this year's congress. Marc is Manager within the Actuarial consulting branch where he puts his focus on Sustainable Finance besides that he is an active alumni within the VSAE making him more than a great fit for the congress. During their plenary session Bouke unfortunately had to attend online. This did not withhold them from making the audience feel connected. The connection with the audience was exceptionally strong this session because Bouke and Marc were able to explain the complex world of an actuary, focusing on Sustainability, in a comprehensible manner. Besides that they made the audience feel included by asking questions.

Lastly for the plenary sessions was Sven van den Beld. This head of the centre of expertise department financial risks and pension funds immediately captured the audience when he walked up to the stage. Sven gave insight into the ESG supervision  of The DNB,“De Nederlandsche Bank”. Making his presentation intriguing for the audience and a great closure for the plenary sessions.

Subsequently it was time for the last 4 remaining interactive sessions. Even though the day had been going for quite a while at this time the participants were still actively interacting during the sessions.

The last part of the day was a discussion panel. Marc van Houdt, René Doff and Sven van den Beld were the three speakers participating in the panel. They were given some statements made throughout the day and shared their standpoints. Moreover the audience was given a chance to give discussion points and ask questions.

To end the day on a lighter note, Jeroen Breen and I gave a concluding speech. After that it was time for networking drinks. The day had come to an end. The speakers were successful, the sponsors content and the board and the committee were joyful. Nevertheless I was disappointed. Disappointed that the day was over but proud to have been able to follow the tradition of hosting the Actuarialcongress as the VSAE.

Julie van Oldenborgh

Chairman VSAE & Actuarial congress 2022

 

More information regarding The Actuarialcongress can be found on www.actuarialcongress.nl.

Article Jeroen Breen