5th Annual Conference, Zurich, 5-7 September 2022

Located in Zurich, Switzerland, the global heart of private wealth management and a major hub in the global banking and reinsurance business, GRASFI 2022 will benefit from its direct proximity to global finance research and practice.

The Global Research Alliance for Sustainable Finance and Investment (‘GRASFI’) was founded in 2017 – with the University of Zurich as a Founding Member – to promote multidisciplinary academic research on sustainable finance and investment. The Alliance currently consists of 30 global research universities.

GRASFI organises a major annual academic conference on sustainable finance and investment. The conference is the largest convening of academic researchers working on sustainable finance and investment. GRASFI is also supporting academic collaboration between researchers working on sustainable finance and nurturing the growth and development of graduate students and junior academics working on these topics.

The 1st Annual Conference was held at the University of Maastricht in 2018, the 2nd at the University of Oxford in 2019, the 3rd at Columbia University in 2020, and the 4th Annual Conference at Central University of Finance and Economics (CUFE), Beijing, in 2021. The 5th Annual Conference is currently being planned by the Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth (CSP) and the Center of Competence in Sustainable Finance (CCSF) at the University of Zurich.

Executive Commitee

The Executive Committee is responsible for the overall organisation of the conference.

  • Dr Falko Paetzold, EBS University / University of Zurich
  • Inke Nyborg, University of Zurich
  • Professor Rob Bauer, Maastricht University
  • Dr Ben Caldecott, University of Oxford
  • Professor Ulrich Volz, SOAS, University of London

Academic Committee

The Academic Committee is responsible for the selection of accepted submissions.

  • Dr Falko Paetzold, EBS University / University of Zurich (Chair)
  • Professor Rob Bauer, Maastricht University
  • Professor Timo Busch, University of Hamburg
  • Professor Steven Ongena, University of Zurich 
  • Professor Caroline Flammer, Columbia University
  • D. Julian Kölbel, University of Zurich

Session Themes

Areas covered can be within, or extend beyond, the following:

Data and Reporting

  • ESG metrics and ratings
  • Financial disclosure and reporting
  • Measuring climate-related factors
  • Spatial finance
  • AI and Big Data

Regulators, Regulation and Policy

  • The role of central banks and regulators
  • Political economy and sustainable finance
  • Sustainable finance and law
  • Effects of sustainable finance regulation

Stakeholders and Themes

  • Impact of sustainable investing on the real economy
  • (Ultra-) High net worth individuals, advisors, intermediaries
  • Behavioural aspects of sustainable investing
  • Investor preferences
  • (Re-)insurance
  • Banking
  • Sustainable investments (e.g. Private Equity, Lending, Blended Finance)
  • Managerial responses to sustainable investing
  • Debt markets (social bonds, social impact bonds, green bonds)
  • Faith-based investors

Finance, Society and the Natural Environment

  • Biodiversity and nature
  • Adaptation and resilience
  • Sustainable sectors (water, agriculture, healthcare, infrastructure investment, etc.)
  • Social and societal effects

Call for Papers

GRASFI is seeking to include 30-40 high-quality papers on sustainable finance and investment in the conference programme. The conference is open to academically rigorous and robust submissions in all areas of sustainable finance and investment. Disciplinary diversity is appreciated, as are all types of methodologies, quantitative as well as qualitative and theoretical work.

Each chosen paper will be given a 30-minute presentation slot. Papers from different disciplines and with different methodological approaches are sought to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and learning. Strong emphasis will be given to quality over quantity of chosen submissions, to ensure a strong experience for conference participants.

The best papers presented will be awarded monetary prizes at the discretion of the Conference Committee.

A PhD Workshop will be offered adjacent to the conference.

While the conference is planned to occur in-person, opportunities to present and participate in a hybrid format will be provided.

Paper Submission

Submissions must be academic working papers, which by the time of submission are not yet accepted for publication.

The Paper Selection Committee will be undertaking a double-blind peer review process. The Paper Selection Committee is chaired by Dr Falko Paetzold.

SUBMISSION DETAILS

  • Please anonymise your submission (double-blind reviewing policy) by excluding authors’ names
  • Please submit your paper via Easychair
  • The deadline for submission is April 4th, 2022.
For queries, please contact us at grasfi2022@sustainablefinancealliance.org.

For more information, please visit the Conference website https://zurich2022.sustainablefinancealliance.org/

Start Time

9:00 am

September 5, 2022

Finish Time

6:00 pm

September 7, 2022

Address

Zurich

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