Yunus Social Business Centre Conference in Sustainable and Socially Responsible Finance

2° Edition Yunus Social Business Centre Conference

in Sustainable and Socially Responsible Finance (2023).

November 2^nd – 3^rd – 4^th 2023 – Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, Imola Campus.

The Yunus Social Business Centre and the Department of Management at the University of Bologna are organizing the second edition of the Sustainable and Socially Responsible Finance Conference that will take place in person on November 2^nd – 3^rd - 4^th.

Socially responsible investing has gained traction as an investment strategy that generates financial returns and promotes social welfare. While the responsible and impact investing market has grown considerably in recent years, concerns persist regarding greenwashing, inadequate regulations, and a need for uniform metrics to measure the social impact of financial activities.

Additionally, climate change poses significant risks to financial and non-financial firms and affects households’ preferences. In this context, energy, transportation, and financial services companies are exposed to transitional and physical risks.

Hence, the challenge of financing the sustainable transition while ensuring a positive return for shareholders and satisfying the firm stakeholders’ expectations is an ongoing topic of debate.

Conference Goals

The Conference aims to bring together leading academics, practitioners, and policymakers and provide the opportunity to present state-of-the-art research on the following significant challenges:

Can sustainable securities meet growing sustainable financial needs?
Which asset pricing methods can be proposed to value innovative financial tools, such as social impact bonds and crowdfunding?
What is policymakers' role in promoting green, impact, and sustainable finance?
Is there a role for fintech in the sustainable finance industry?
Can artificial intelligence play a role for sustainable finance?
How can behavioral aspects influence the choice of sustainable investment opportunities?
Do ESG metrics call for more regulation?

Examples of topics are:

1. Sustainable finance and impact investing.

2. Financial intermediaries and their role in the sustainability transition.

3. Finance for social enterprises and sustainable business models.

4. Regulation and policy in sustainable finance.

5. Sustainable finance and the energy transition.

6. Fintech and sustainable finance.

7. Artificial intelligence in the sustainable finance industry.

8. Behavioral finance and sustainable investment decision-making.

9. Measuring and valuing social and environmental impact in finance.

10. Sustainability reporting and disclosure in finance.

11. ESG integration and performance measurement in investment portfolios.