Sustainable Finance
Over the past years, there has been a significant increase in global awareness and concern regarding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, as well as the impact of climate change. This surge has led to a growing demand for sustainable financial practices and investments that consider these factors, evident in both academic research and practical applications. This comprehensive course provides an overview of fundamental concepts, including investor motivations for ESG investing, performance evaluation of green and brown portfolios, approaches to hedging climate risks in portfolios. With a strong emphasis on climate finance, the course delves into these topics from both theoretical and empirical perspectives, providing students with valuable insights into the landscape of sustainable finance. In the second part of the course, students are expected to work independently on a recently published research paper from the academic finance literature.
Learning Goals
- Gain an understanding of the field of sustainable finance, including its various terminologies and concepts,
- Develop the skills to analyze and interpret ESG scores to make informed decisions regarding the sustainability of organizations,
- Critical evaluation of recent empirical and theoretical research articles related to sustainable finance.
Examination Format
- Presentation of an assigned research paper (50% of the grade)
- Research paper review (ca. 5-8 pages) (50% of the grade)
Students will be assigned in groups of two, based on their preferences of topics.
Dates
- Monday, April 14, 9:15–12:00: Introductory lecture and topic presentation,
- Wednesday, April 16, 9:15–12:00: Lecture and tutorial,
- Monday, June 2, 8:15–12:00: Student presentations,
- Friday, July 18, 11:59 p.m.: Submission deadline for student papers,
Registration
The allocation of participants in the restricted Master’s courses will be done centrally via ORsign. Information about the registration procedure and deadlines can be found here: Study Management.
Further Information
For any further information, please write an e-mail to the instructor of this course, Marco Thalhammer.
