Climate Finance

Climate change may be today’s most serious challenge to the future of humanity. Scientists have concluded that avoiding catastrophic climate change will require a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050 or shortly thereafter, a dramatic reversal after several hundred years of industrial growth. This will require a rapid transformation of the global economy, requiring trillions of dollars in capital and creating new and risks and opportunities for investors to finance the transition. This course builds on the lessons learned in B8705 Business and Climate Change. The course begins with an introduction to climate finance and the topic of carbon markets, followed by classes on project finance to finance renewable energy, venture and growth capital to finance emerging climate technologies, and public equity strategies including divestment and ESG investing. Financial products in the fixed income and insurance markets are examined for climate impact, followed by a class session on development finance to understand the unique challenges and solutions to investing in climate solutions in emerging markets. The course wraps-up with a class session on the strategies used by banks and investment firms for the transition to net zero, concluding with a discussion of the impact of the climate crisis on opportunities and careers in finance.