Executive Education - - Sustainable Investing | Queen's Executive Education Program

Program Details Takeaways Content Format Session Leaders Inquiries

“As long as temperatures and sea levels continue to rise and with them climate-related financial risks, central banks, supervisors, and financial institutions will continue to raise the bar to address these climate-related risks and to ‘green’ the financial system. We need collective leadership and action across countries and we need to be ambitious.”

Mark Carney
Governor
Bank of England

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations are rapidly being integrated into finance decisions, led by transformative policies by professional investors. As sustainability becomes a central investment criterion, performance assessments, asset allocations, and portfolio management strategies are changing, and transforming the practice of finance.

Developed and presented by the Institute for Sustainable Finance, this program will provide the key components and considerations for sustainable investing and ESG assessment, including deeper dives into integrating ESG into securities selection and portfolio management processes, and best practices for stewardship and engagement.

Working with case studies will put the concepts to practical use and build familiarity.

In this program you will learn:

The latest best practices in sustainable investing
The major sources of ESG information and how to assess and utilize such information in the investment process
How to integrate ESG effectively into security and credit analysis, and the portfolio management process
Meeting the evolving expectations for stewardship and engagement

Participants receive the Sustainable Investing Certificate of Completion from Queen's Executive Education.

Dynamic virtual classroom

Participate in the program from anywhere. Our online learning platform combines live, interactive video instruction with breakout sessions, panel discussions, and expert Q&A.

Who Should Attend

This program is for professionals who want to deepen their understanding and skills in the latest sustainable investment principles and practices. Designed for institutional investors, portfolio managers, investment advisors, equity analysts, credit and risk analysts, investor relations, corporate governance, corporate sustainability and ESG, accounting, legal, transactional and compliance, and anyone interested in a fulsome understanding of sustainable investing.

Discounts Available

Select Banks and Financial Associations

Employees across all areas of Canadian banks sponsoring the ISF (CIBC, RBC, Scotiabank, TD) benefit from a 15% discount. Members of RIA Canada, CPA Canada, Canadian CFA Societies (and candidates), and Global Risk Institute will also receive a 15% discount.

Registered Charities

Queen’s Executive Education is pleased to offer a limited number of discounted seats in every program to employees of Canadian registered charities. Check your eligibility.

CCDI Partnership

Smith School of Business is an Employer Partner of the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion.

“…We are on the edge of a fundamental reshaping of finance… because capital markets pull risk forward, we will see changes in capital allocation more quickly than we see changes to the climate itself. In the near future – and sooner than most anticipate – there will be a significant reallocation of capital.”

Larry Fink
Chairman and CEO
BlackRock

Personal Benefits

This program will enhance your effectiveness in your professional role by enhancing:

Knowledge of the latest sustainable finance best practices
Understanding of ESG information and how to apply it in the investment process
Understanding of investor expectations for ESG considerations
Ability to analyze investment opportunities and performance through an ESG lens
Understanding of approaches to integrating ESG considerations into the portfolio management process
Understanding of the importance of engagement

Organizational Benefits

Organizations will benefit from their employees improving:

Expertise in latest sustainable investing concepts and frameworks
ESG analysis and assessment ability
Understanding of ESG integration in analysis and portfolio management
Capacity in stewardship and engagement

Content

The program covers the following topics:

The major sustainable investing approaches
Discussions addressing important sources of ESG information, and how to apply it in the investment process
How to integrate and assess ESG information in investment consideration, risk analysis and credit analysis
Integrating ESG information in the portfolio management process including asset allocation, security selection, risk management, and performance evaluation
Evolving expectations for institutional investors in stewardship and engagement
Stewardship best practices including goal-setting, progress monitoring, and reporting
Strategies for proxy voting related to ESG considerations
The role of collective engagement initiatives such as Climate Action 100+
Working with case studies to bring concepts and strategies to life in practical application

Dynamic Virtual Classroom

Participate in the program from anywhere. Our online learning platform combines live, interactive video instruction with breakout sessions, panel discussions, and expert Q&A.

Our learning platform is fully encrypted, allowing you to connect securely from home, office or anywhere in between.

Virtual programs are designed to fit within your schedule, allowing you to learn new skills and immediately put them to work.

Session Leaders

Session leaders include senior professors from Smith School of Business and knowledgeable experts from industry. These outstanding teachers are constantly in touch with today's business world through real-world business experience, Board memberships and their own consulting practices.

Dr. Sean Cleary is a Professor of Finance at Smith School of Business, Queen’s University. He is the Chair of the Institute for Sustainable Finance based at Smith, as well as the founder and Academic Director of the Master of Finance program. He holds a Ph.D. in finance from the University of Toronto and is a CFA charter holder. He is a current member of the CFA Society Toronto Advisory Council, and is a former member of the Board of Directors for the Toronto CFA Society and the Atlantic Canada CFA Society (where he served as President).

Dr. Cleary has authored 14 finance textbooks and has published more than 30 research articles, including several in top tier finance journals. His publications have been cited over 4,400 times and he has received several major research grants. His most recent research and educational interests focus on the field of sustainable finance. He is an Associate Editor for two finance journals and frequently serves as a reviewer for many of the top finance journals. Dr. Cleary regularly serves as an expert witness on cost of capital and capital markets.

Sarah conducts climate change materiality assessments and climate change scenario analysis, works with her clients to set ambitious and achievable climate change goals and targets, and develops implementation roadmaps. She regularly presents to boards of directors on climate change and ESG factors and implications for corporate governance and oversight, and the link with financial and operational performance and long-term value.

Prior to joining ESG Global Advisors, Sarah was a Principal at CPA Canada where she produced research, thought leadership and guidance for companies to integrate climate change considerations into business strategy, risk management, governance, and reporting. Prior to CPA Canada, Sarah held senior roles at PwC and MNP working with the energy and mining sectors.

She is a member of the Institute for Corporate Directors Climate Strategy Advisory Board for the Canadian Chapter of the WEF Climate Governance Initiative. Sarah sits on the Board of Directors of Leading Change and Sustainable Buildings Canada. She has a Bachelor of Commerce from McGill University, ISO 14064-3 Certification for Greenhouse Gas Verifications, and received the 2018 Emerging Leader Award from CPA Ontario.

Sustainable Investing - Virtual