ESG and the Trans­formation of Fin­ance

Course content

The financial world is under increasing scrutiny to “lead” in the service of sustainability. In order to respond to such a calling, financial organizations are tasked to design new and innovative financial mechanisms, that can not only withstand heavy investment and expected returns, but also ensure #thefuturewewant. 

This course is designed to immerse students into the global sustainability challenges embarked upon by institutional investors, investment firms and innovative companies, to develop strategy, management systems, metrics, and financing policies. Strongly grounded in theoretical and empirical studies from various disciplines in the field of finance, economics, development and environmental studies, this course will provide a thorough understanding of the growing field of ESG, sustainable and impact investment. Students will explore the field of sustainable asset management, and the strategies and reporting used by many of the leading organizations in the field. Participants will similarly acquire specific competencies in carbon finance, ecosystem service financing, sustainable real estate, and green bonds. Of particular note, students will learn how to finance new economic and social challenges in a sustainable manner. In addition to the highly qualified faculty leading the class, leading experts in the field, have actively volunteered their time to also relate how experts in this field must be an active leader in the field of sustainable investments. Students will explore the tradeoffs between equity investing with an ownership stake vs. investing without voting power. It is worth noting that students interested in this field must understand that investing in long term value creation is just as much about innovative schemes, as the fostering and development of new indices and metrics for attributing value in their financial dealings. The topic of sustainability is not only emerging as a critical component in these metrics and indices, it is viewed more and more as a competitive advantage.