The Top 50 Women in Sustainable Finance 2026 has been announced! And that's not all: we look back on a wonderful afternoon at Achmea. On 29 September, 200 professionals came together for meaningful networking, plenty of inspiration and, of course, the announcement of the new Top 50.
Addressing sexism is something we do together
Bianca Tetteroo (Chair of the Executive Board, Achmea) and Lidwien Suur (Executive Board member, Achmea) kicked off the afternoon with a candid conversation. Bianca shared her concerns about rising absence rates among women, who increasingly combine work with care responsibilities.
Drawing on personal experience, they also discussed how to address sexism. It often comes down to ignorance, so a light approach afterwards is usually enough. Support from someone in the majority can also make a real difference.
Always have enough apple pie
Next up was keynote speaker Irene Heemskerk, Head of the Climate Change Centre at the European Central Bank. She took us through the five most important lessons of her career.
The first lesson came from home. She grew up in a big family, where she learned how to bring people together. Her lesson, with a wink: "Always have enough apple pie." Make sure there's enough for everyone, and everyone will join in. She also believes in making big ideas small and concrete, so people know what they need to do. And stick to your mandate, but never use it as an excuse.
On claiming your space, she pointed to Christine Lagarde as an example. Lagarde does it with charm and grace, and stays very calm when something isn't okay. She simply says: "I have to stop you here." Irene also stressed the importance of taking care of yourself: know who's on your 911 list!
We also loved her advice not to feel guilty too quickly. When she was hesitating in her first job, her manager told her: "Never stay because of people, because people will not stay for you either."
Hurt or heal
A question that often comes up is whether something is a moral case or a business case. For Irene, you don't have to choose. "You can decide to hurt or heal with your investments," she said. And the business case is there too. Spain and Sweden are more resilient because they rely more on renewable energy.
She also reflected on how politicised climate change has become, even though the science is clear. Irene wants to show what we lose when nature disappears. After all, without clean water we wouldn't survive a month.
12 years apart
Daphne de Kluis (Executive Board member, Achmea) and Maureen Schlejen-Peeters (Chair of the Board, Achmea Investment Management) took the moral vs. business case question further in their conversation on sustainable finance at Achmea.
They also gave us a preview of Centraal Beheer's new campaign on the pension gap. It's a topic close to Bianca's opening conversation. Women work part-time more often, take on more care responsibilities and earn less on average. Year after year, that shows up in their pensions.
In the Netherlands, women receive on average 36% less pension than men. Centraal Beheer translates this into a 12-year gap: at 55, a man has on average built up as much pension as a woman at 67. Watch the campaign on LinkedIn or read more about the research behind it (in Dutch).
The Top 50 is here!
And last but not least: the launch of the Top 50! Jury chair Jellie Banga (Chief Business Officer, Invest-NL) announced the list. A well-deserved recognition, but also a responsibility, according to Chantal Korteweg, President of WIFS. Together with WIFS board member Willem Vosmer, she moderated the afternoon.
Congratulations to all nominees! Discover the full list here.
