Canadian Sustainable Finance Network (CSFN) Conference 2021
Calgary, Alberta
November 19-20, 2021
Thank you for attending the 2nd Annual Canadian Sustainable Finance Network (CSFN) Conference!
The CSFN conference brings together like-minded academics and financial industry participants to discuss the latest innovation in sustainable finance research and education. The conference presents an opportunity to discuss current and challenging issues related to sustainable finance development in Canada. Ultimately, the conference's goal is to serve as a platform for discussions that will support the transition of Canada's financial system to one in which sustainable growth is ingrained in everyday policy decisions and business practices.
Key Information
Date: November 19-20, 2021
Location: Online (Zoom)
CSFN 2021 Program
CSFN 2021included two very distinguished guest speakers as well as several Academic Sessions.
Each Academic Session has a Chair/Moderator to keep track of time with 3 papers presented in each session (20 mins. presentation and 10 mins. Q&A per paper)
Example of the Genius of “And” | Fireside Chat with Alex Edmans - Nov.19, 8:30am to 9:45am MST
Recorded video from the event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I419Cvvw-T8
What can a leader do to maximize both purpose and profit? Benefit both shareholders and society? Learn more from Alex Edmans, author of Grow the Pie: How Great Companies Deliver both Purpose and Profit.
In collaboration with the Pivot on Purpose Summit
Format
- Live broadcast
- Presentation
- Audience questions welcome
Speaker
Alex Edmans, Professor, London Business School
Alex Edmans is Professor of Finance at London Business School and Academic Director of the Centre for Corporate Governance. He has a PhD in Finance from MIT Sloan as a Fulbright Scholar and was previously a tenured professor at Wharton. He is Managing Editor of the Review of Finance and Associate Editor of the Journal of Financial Economics. Alex has spoken at the World Economic Forum in Davos, testified in the UK Parliament, and given the TED talk What to Trust in a Post-Truth World and the TEDx talk The Social Responsibility of Business with a combined 2.4 million views. Alex’s book, Grow the Pie: How Great Companies Deliver Both Purpose and Profit was named to the Financial Times Business Books of the Year for 2020. He has become a co-author of “Principles of Corporate Finance” with Brealey, Myers and Allen, for the upcoming 14th edition to be published in 2022.
Moderator
Jim Dewald, Dean, Haskayne School of Business
Jim Dewald is the dean of the Haskayne School of Business and a professor in the strategy and entrepreneurship. A business leader who can provide an effective bridge between strategy theory and on-the-ground practice, his research interests are related to the micro-foundations of strategy formulation and implementation. Specifically, his work has contributed to the constructs of cognitive resilience, entrepreneurial thinking and strategic response to disruptive innovations, most specifically business model innovations.
Jim holds a BSc in civil engineering and MBA from the University of Alberta, and a PhD in strategy and global management from the University of Calgary. Prior to entering academia, he was active in the Calgary business community as the CEO of two major real estate development companies and a leading local engineering consulting practice, and president of a tech-based international real estate brokerage company. Currently, Jim sits on the board of Boardwalk REIT, and the West Campus Development Trust.
Recorded video from the event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I419Cvvw-T8
Academic Research Session I: ESG, Energy Transition, and Investors - Nov. 19, 10:15am to 11.45am MST
Presenters:
Kathleen Hanley, Lehigh University: The Salience of ESG Ratings for Stock Pricing: Evidence From (Potentially) Confused Investors Session 1 Paper - Rzeznik_CSFN .pdf
Truzaar Dordi, University of Waterloo: Ten Financial Actors Can Accelerate a Transition Away from Fossil Fuels Session 1 Paper - Dordi_CSFN .pdf
Hany Fahmy, Royal Roads University: The Rise in Investors Awareness of Climate Risks after the Paris Agreement and the Clean Energy-Oil-Technology Prices Nexus Session 1 Paper - Fahmy_CSFN .pdf
Chair:
Ari Pandes, University of Calgary
Recorded video from the session: https://youtu.be/eNZe7gAxlKM
ESG & Sustainable Investing. Deadly Distractions? | Fireside Chat with Tariq Fancy - Nov.19, Noon to 1:15pm - MST
Recorded video from the event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKVjjrPvRE0
We are hearing a lot about ESG, but is this really an appropriate measure of environmental and social progress? Does it help to achieve a more equitable future? Hear from Tariq Fancy, former CIO for sustainability investing at BlackRock capital for his perspectives on how financial measures can build a better future.
In collaboration with the Pivot on Purpose Summit
Format
Pre-recorded presentation specifically for CSFN
Speaker
Tariq Fancy, Founder, Rumie; former CIO, BlackRock Capital
Tariq Fancy is the founder of Rumie, which brings affordable digital education to remote, underserved communities worldwide ranging from Indian villages to Syrian refugee camps. Tariq founded Rumie after a career at the intersection of finance, technology and emerging markets, and his business career and unique decision to found Rumie has been chronicled in extensive case studies by Harvard Business School and INSEAD Business School.
Prior to founding Rumie, Tariq spent a long career in finance, starting as an investment banker in Silicon Valley and later becoming the youngest partner at a New York Private Equity firm. He is most notably known for his role as CIO at BlackRock Capital.
As an investor he led the early investments that brought mobile phones into emerging markets as a "leapfrog" innovation over landlines. Tariq believes that merging sound business principles and affordable technology can create revolutionary solutions to some of humanity’s most pressing problems.
Tariq studied at four universities abroad – Brown, Oxford, Sciences Po and INSEAD – and speaks four languages.
Moderator
Dr. Yrjo Koskinen, PhD, Associate Dean of Research and Business Impact & BMO Professor of Sustainable and Transition Finance, Haskayne School of Business
Dr. Yrjo Koskinen, PhD has focused his research in sustainable finance and corporate finance and governance. Currently he is exploring environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues and their impact on firm performance and risk, and the effects of limited liability on corporations.
Prior to his academic career, Yrjo worked as a financial journalist and as an economist at the Bank of Finland. He was also faculty at the Stockholm School of Economics, Boston University’s Questrom School of Business and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Yrjo currently serves on the advisory board of the Institute of Sustainable Finance at Queen’s University and the steering committee for the Canadian Sustainable Finance Network.
Recorded video from the event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKVjjrPvRE0
Academic Research Session II: ESG and Big Data - Nov. 20, 9:00am to 10:30am MST
Presenters:
Andrew Karolyi, Cornell University: Paying Attention to ESG Matters: Evidence from Big Data Analytics Session 2 Paper - Karolyi_CSFN .pdf
Elham Kheradmand Nezhad, Université de Montréal: Alignment of Organizations' Climate-Related Risk Disclosures with Material Risks and Metrics Session 2 Paper - Kheradmand_CSFN .pdf
Najah Attig, St. Mary's University: Word Speaks Louder than Action: Do Firms Window Dress Their Social Capital? Session 2 Paper - Attig_CSFN .pdf
Chair:
Basma Majerbi, University of Victoria
Recorded video from the session: https://youtu.be/26eP43iPfMY
Academic Research Session III: Disclosure - Nov.20, 11:00am to 12:30pm MST
Presenters:
Marcel Metzner, Oxford University: TCFD Climate Risk Disclosures: Early Evidence on the “Gold Standard" Session 3 Paper - Metzner_CSFN .pdf
Ryan Riordan, Queen's University: Carbon Liquidity Session 3 Paper - Riordan_CSFN .pdf
Ailin Chen, University of Alberta: Voluntary Disclosure of Climate Risk: Some Early Evidence from CDP Participation Session 3 Paper - Mehrotra_CSFN .pdf
Chair:
Anne Kleffner, University of Calgary
Recorded video from the session: https://youtu.be/z_XmFCG5ma0
Academic Research Session IV: Environmental Policy and Climate Change - Nov.20, 1:00pm to 2:30pm MST
Presenters:
Yaniv Grinstein, Cornell University: Corporate Environmental Policy and Product Market Competition Session 4 Paper - Larkin_CSFN .pdf
Neal Willcott, Queen's University: The Cost of Delaying to Invest: A Canadian Perspective Session 4 Paper - Willcott_CSFN .pdf
Lilian Ng, York University: Outsourcing Climate Change Session 4 Paper - Ng_CSFN .pdf
Chair:
Yrjo Koskinen, University of Calgary
Recorded video from the session: https://youtu.be/dyvriC5w9JA
The Centre for Corporate Sustainability (CCS) was founded in order to disseminate knowledge and find balance in environmental, social and economic approaches in energy. More Information on CCS