Education
Green Finance courses
Environmental Finance UG course
This course is a thorough introduction to the fast-evolving and expanding subject of environmental finance. In particular, it:
- introduces the environmental and social risks for firms and banks and highlights the difficulty of their measurement;
- describes the risks for banks and investors who do not take sufficiently into account the ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) performance of the entities they finance;
- analyzes the on-going effort for the development of accounting standards for ESG measurement;
- discusses the fast-changing institutional environment and the additional challenges it poses to all economic agents;
- analyzes the economics of ‘green’ banking, ‘green’ investments and pollution markets;
- explores how banks, and the financial system in general, can contribute towards addressing environmental and social problems.
After completing the course, the students are expected to understand:
- ‘green’ financial products and their risk-return trade-offs;
- the role and the incentives of major players, such as, financial institutions, institutional investors, NGOs and governments;
- the risks (rewards) of banks that provide financial services to firms with weak (strong) ESG credentials;
- the difficulties of measuring ESG performance and the accounting standards under development;
- the carbon footprint of corporations and institutions, and ways to reduce it;
- carbon credits –creation and usage– and related investment opportunities in pollution markets.
Environmental Finance PG course, MSc in Banking and Finance, FT or PT
This course is a thorough introduction to the fast-evolving and expanding subject of environmental finance. In particular, it:
- introduces the environmental and social risks for firms and banks and highlights the difficulty of their measurement;
- describes the risks for banks and investors who do not take sufficiently into account the ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) performance of the entities they finance;
- analyzes the on-going effort for the development of accounting standards for ESG measurement;
- discusses the fast-changing institutional environment and the additional challenges it poses to all economic agents;
- analyzes the economics of ‘green’ banking, ‘green’ investments and pollution markets;
- explores how banks, and the financial system in general, can contribute towards addressing environmental and social problems.
- discusses reporting issues and regulation related to environmental matters
After completing the course, the students are expected to understand:
- ‘green’ financial products and their risk-return trade-offs;
- the role and the incentives of major players, such as, financial institutions, institutional investors, NGOs and governments;
- the risks (rewards) of banks that provide financial services to firms with weak (strong) ESG credentials;
- the difficulties of measuring ESG performance and the accounting standards under development;
- the carbon footprint of corporations and institutions, and ways to reduce it;
- carbon credits –creation and usage– and related investment opportunities in pollution markets.
- basic reporting issues and regulation related to environmental matters
![](https://bankfin.unipi.gr/greenfinlab/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/DSC00416-1024x768.jpg)
Collaborations with the ACCA, the ICAEW and the CFA Institute
The Department of Banking and Financial Management closely collaborates with both the ACCA, the ICAEW and the CFA Institute (https://bankfin.unipi.gr/en/accreditations).
The Green Finance and Banking lab aims at incorporating sustainable finance and accounting knowledge within education opportunities offered to the Department’s students.
Useful resources:
https://www.icaew.com/technical/sustainability/icaew-fundamentals-of-sustainability-programme
https://www.icaew.com/groups-and-networks/communities/sustainability-and-climate-change
https://rpc.cfainstitute.org/en/esg-standards
In the past:
https://bankfin.unipi.gr/en/2022/10/13/icaew-sustainability-university-programme