ESG and Sustainable Investing 101

360 Foundational Course on ESG and Sustainable Finance | Anchored in CFA Institute's research.

Welcome to ED4S’s foundational course on  ESG and Sustainable Investing .

This course is designed for professionals interested to get up to speed with the evolution of sustainable investing and environmental, social, and governance factors in the investing industry.

This  entertainment driven , highly  visual  and  laser-focused  course will build a  solid foundation  in understanding the integration of the Environmental, Social, and Governance Factors in the investment decision process.

Course draws on the research and programs developed by the  CFA Institute ,  Sustainability Accounting Standards Board ,  Principles of Responsible Investing  and numerous other renowned resources.

About is:

ED4S Academy  draws on years of sustainable finance  industry expertise  and  leading research  to design and build engaging, visual and adaptive short courses in Sustainable Finance.

We help organizations to offer ESG training to their employees in a flexible, scalable and cost-effective manner.

ED4S is a Sustainability-Awareness-As-A-Service Platform.

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OUR MISSION:

To accelerate adoption of sustainability practices by mainstreaming sustainable finance education.

ABOUT THE COURSE:

This is one of the 4 courses offered by ED4S and is a great place to start your journey in the Sustainable Finance space.

Course is designed for individuals with no background in ESG or Sustainable Finance that wish to create general understanding and transition their career to positions such as ESG Analyst, ESG Portfolio Manager, Financial Advisor, Sustainability Officer, ESG consultant.

IMPORTANT NOTE :  This course  DOES NOT  teach you how to manage your personal investments or how to construct an ESG portfolio.

This is an  introductory course  on Sustainable Investing and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Factors.

The course is designed to meet the needs of individuals that would like to collaborate and have a common language with the sustainability professionals.

Level:  Beginner

**** Ideal for individuals with  no background knowledge on ESG Investing topic *** . For a more advanced courses on Sustainable Finance courses, please refer to  ED4S website.

Being educated on environmental, social and governance factors is becoming a key in successful integrated business and investment management.

Whether you are a  ✔️ Financial advisor, ✔️ Finance professional, ✔️ Student, ✔️ Passionate about sustainability ;   this course will allow you to catch up and build  awareness  about interconnection of the ESG and investment management.

Financial industry is evolving at a rapid speed; demand for  Sustainable  and  Socially Responsible Investments  is rising on both individual and institutional investors' side.  Integration of material environmental, social and governance ( ESG ) factors into financial analysis has proven to enrich fundamental analysis and result in better risk adjusted returns.

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This course will allow you to understand the difference between ESG or Sustainable Investing and Ethical or Socially Responsible Investing. You will learn about the foundation and current state of the market as well as basic terms and concepts used in the field. We will cover some more specific environmental, social and governance factors and risks (climate change, water scarcity, biodiversity loss, employee diversity, human rights, data privacy, board independence and cyber security). Bridging ESG factors and  financial performance  will bring clarity on interrelationship between these  extra-financial issues  and risk/return outcomes.

The course will give you an overview of the  seven main ESG Investing strategies : negative screening, positive screening, best in-class , norms based screening, ESG integration, impact investing and shareholder engagement. It will provide examples of how ESG factors can be integrated into the financial valuation models.

Multiple quizzes  and an assignment will keep you actively engaged in the course.

To apply your knowledge you will conduct a  case study  analysis on Putnam Sustainable Leaders Fund.

We will wrap up with key takeaways from the course.

All students are welcome to join our community forum where we continue to share knowledge with you by posting articles, research papers and announcing pertinent webinars.

MODULE #1

What is Sustainable Investing

Sustainable Investing Overview

Navigating ESG Investing Terms

Market Size

Terminology & Concepts

Quiz

MODULE #2

Investment Strategies

Financial Performance

Quiz

MODULE #3

Environmental Factors

Social Factors

Governance Factors

Bridging ESG Factors and Financial Performance

Quiz

MODULE #4

ESG Data and Ratings

ESG Standards & Frameworks

Quiz

MODULE #5

Key Takeaways

Assignment : Case Study

Assignment: Test

Assignment: Explanations

BONUS:

ESG Integration in Practice

Careers in Sustainable Finance

Understanding of English language and basic understanding of business concepts.

KnowESG interpretation

ESG Investing

Environmental, social, and corporate governance

ESG basis course on LinkedIn