BEAM Grab the Mic webinar
Date: 23 October 2025
Speakers
From Australia’s Market Development Facility (MDF):
Angus Towart, Climate Change Manager
Nadhia Najeeb, Business Advisor
Nimesha Sumaduri Palliyaguru, Business Advisor
Watch the webinar:
There is increasing demand for Market Systems Development programmes to engage more meaningfully with climate change. Meeting this challenge requires changes in how programmes are managed internally, how they engage with businesses and how they measure success.
Australia’s Market Development Facility (MDF) is a long-standing programme currently active in Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu and Tonga. Its third five-year phase (2022-2027) included a specific climate change objective for the first time.
The speakers discussed how MDF underwent an internal transformation to engage more meaningfully with climate change - reviewing portfolios, developing strategies, establishing new roles, structures and systems, and embedding climate thinking into how field teams work with businesses.
They shared practical examples of how to assess climate change risks and opportunities and integrate these into market systems strategies. This included portfolio examples from the agriculture and tourism sectors in Sri Lanka.
See also:
- Angus Towart's blog: MSD as a practical approach for climate action
- MDF Sri Lanka case study, showcasing how agri-input firms shifted towards environmentally friendly fertilisers