In 2020 alone, ESG (environmental, social and governance) funds doubled. Unlike a decade ago, sustainable finance is no longer a niche topic. The EU's Taxonomy regulation and its Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation (SFRD) is bringing ESG considerations and criteria into the mainstream. However, the rapid growth of ESG investing has raised questions not only about 'greenwashing' and 'social washing' especially, but also about ESG measurement and standards.
What options are available for preventing greenwashing? What changes are needed to avoid misallocation of capital? How can it be ensured that the social aspects are not ignored, and what can and should be measured? What can we measure already or what needs more work?
For the EU to successfully meet its carbon neutrality goals, it will be key to ensure just transitions to low carbon growth in order to avoid popular backlash against climate action, especially in less wealthy EU countries. The EU has a great opportunity to push for sustainability 2.0, learning from impact investing which takes into account impact measurement.
This event is jointly organised by the EUI Climate Cluster and Environmental Challenges and Climate Change Cluster.
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