Introduction to Sustainable Finance

The course provides technical knowledge on the contribution that sustainable finance can make to sustainable development and on how it may be deployed in real-world policy or business contexts.

This interactive and practice-oriented course, originally developed in 2018 and comprehensively updated in 2021, covers the basics of Sustainable Finance while providing several opportunities to dive deeper. The course covers sustainable finance instruments, methodologies and frameworks for integrating sustainability into financial decisions, key global sustainable finance initiatives, and sustainable finance regulations. It is designed for interested participants from governments, academia, the financial sector, businesses, and civil society.

Learning Objectives:

• Explains the potential contribution of sustainable finance to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change;
• Explains the core concepts of sustainable finance and the relevance of sustainability considerations for the key actors in the financial system;
• Describes the role that regulation and industry initiatives (self-regulation) play in shaping sustainable finance;
• Describes different sustainable finance products, such as bonds and loans, that may be available to provide the capital needed to support the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals and the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

UN Digital Certificate

Once you have obtained a passing grade of 70% or more on all quizzes, you qualify for the digital certificate of completion from the course. Please note that you only have up to 3 attempts per quiz.

After successfully passing all quizzes, your certificate will be available upon payment of USD 20. Once the payment is completed, you will be able to access and download your digital certificate.