Philanthropy is rarely an innovator in capitalism but it is sometimes a by-product. In the case of global reinsurer Swiss Re, the attention of the panel was captured by the ability of its environmental and commodities markets (ECM) arm to combine these two philosophies, leading to it once again being voted Weather House of the Year for 2008.

Two initiatives stand out in particular. The first is the ECM group's expansion of its affordable weather insurance scheme for smallholder farmers in India