Principles of Sustainable Finance, ESG Investing, and SDG Business ManagementUNU-IAS Certificate Course for Professional Stakeholders
Syllabus for 2020/2021 (Short Version)•••••••••••

Course Coordinators:- Dr. Kim SCHUMACHER, Adjunct Lecturer, United Nations
University - Advanced Studies of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)- Mr. Mitsuo KOJIMA, Affirmative Investment Management and UNUIAS Board Member
Course Component: Lecture and MBA-style Case Method Teaching
Academic year: 2020/2021
Offered semester: Spring/Summer
Course schedule: 7 June - 2 July 2021(4 weeks)
Course/teaching format: Hybrid (weekday courses are online; weekend seminars are inperson); (3 classes/week: 1x regular class / 1x case study class / and 1x workshop class)Course Structure:- 4x regular 120min sessions (Zoom)- 4x 120min case study sessions (Zoom)- 4x 120min weekend in-person/hybrid workshop and networking
sessions over the course of 4 weeks (held at UNU Campus Tokyo if
Covid-19 safety context permits)
Course fees: ¥200,000/person
Language used: English
Location: United Nations University, Tokyo, Japan
Certificate: UNU-IAS Certificate of Completion will be issued

I. Course description and aims
In light of the central role of the finance and investment sectors in fostering sustainable development
and manage climate-related risks, this course will employ a mix of lectures and MBA-style applied casemethod teaching to familiarise graduate-level students and professionals in a practical manner with thechallenges and the opportunities that arise through ESG (environmental, social, and governance) factor
integration at the organizational and institutional levels. The lectures and cases will examine theapproaches that various economic actors and sustainability stakeholders have been pursuing topromote sustainability and manage climate-related risks in the financial and corporate sectors.

II. Course rationale
Sustainable finance and investing based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors
remain a fairly novel concept in Japan, but numerous signs are pointing to a paradigm shift in Japan,
Asia, and globally. This UNU course supports capacity building in the rapidly changing financial andcorporate sectors where the integration of non-financial frameworks such as the TCFD (Task Force on
Climate-related Financial Disclosure), initiatives like the CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), PRI(Principles of Responsible Investment), or the FSA Stewardship Code's recent revision, are becoming
material requirements across organizational value chains. Furthermore, this practitioner-oriented
course on sustainable finance will be instructed by experts who have diverse graduate-level teachingexperience and interact at the intersection of technology, innovation, business, finance, social andnatural sciences, hence covering the complexities of the topic.

III. Learning outcomes
Participants will be able to:•Gain practical knowledge through exposure to concrete real-world business scenarios thataddress the big ESG management challenges confronting organizations

Dr Kim Schumacher - Principles of Sustainable Finance and ESG Management Course Syllabus - Short | Page 1 of 4••••Develop problem-solving skills by being put in the role of the decision-maker and explore how
present decisions will influence future financial and non-financial performance metrics and KPIs
Further understand fundamental sustainability concepts across the financial and business sectors
Integrate key ESG factors into portfolio management and investment decision-making processes
Using ESG management and investing as climate impact and risk management tools

IV. Keywords•

Sustainable Finance, ESG Investment, SDGs, Climate Change, Management, Sustainability

V. Competencies that will be developed•••••

Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Specialist skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

VI. Class flow
This course will apply a balanced structure between expert lectures, case method teaching groupdiscussions), and industry practitioner talks. Participants may be assigned additional shortreports/readings as complementary tasks to each week’s discussed topic.

VII. Class structure (subject to adjustments, depending on availability of speakers)
Cluster
Week 1(Cluster I)

Week 2(Cluster II)

Week 3(Cluster III)

Week 4(ClusterIV)

CalendarMon, 7 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Zoom)

OutlineClass 1.1.1. SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNUIAS/International Leaders I + Contextualisation and Q&A

Wed, 9 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Fri, 11 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Hybrid)Mon, 14 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Wed, 16 June 2021 from 18:30- 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Fri, 18 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Hybrid)Mon, 21 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Wed, 23 June 2021 from 18:30- 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Fri, 25 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Hybrid)Mon, 28 June 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Wed, 30 June 2021 from 18:30- 20:30 (120min, Zoom)
Fri, 2 July 2021 from 18:30 20:30 (120min, Hybrid)Class 1.2: Case Study on Climate-related Risks andFinancial Materiality (+ Group discussions)Class 1.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar withInvited Expert(s) I
Class 2.1.1. SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNUIAS/International Leaders II + Contextualisation and Q&A
Class 2.2: Case Study on Non-financial Reporting in Japanand the EU (+ Group discussions)Class 2.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with
Invited Expert(s) II
Class 3.1.1. SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNUIAS/International Leaders III + Contextualisation and Q&A
Class 3.2: Case Study on the reliability of ESG Ratings andScores (+ Group discussions)Class 3.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with
Invited Expert(s) III
Class 4.1.1. SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNUIAS/International Leaders IV + Contextualisation and Q&A
Class 4.2: Case Study on ESG Strategies and theInvestment Universe in Japan (+ Group discussions)Class 4.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar withInvited Expert(s) IV
Certificate Awarding Ceremony

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VIII. Course outline
Week 1: Cluster 1
Class 1.1.1: SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNU-IAS/International Leaders I
Class 1.1.2: Contextualisation of Cluster 1 (incl. Q&A):• The Role of the Financial Sector in Achieving the SDGs
• Climate-related Risks and Financial Materiality• Managing Climate-related Risks
Class 1.2: Case Study on Climate-related Risks and Financial Materiality (+ Group discussions)Class 1.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with Invited Expert(s) I

Week 2: Applied Cluster 2Class 2.1.1: SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNU-IAS/International Leaders II
Class 2.1.2: Contextualisation of Cluster 2 (incl. Q&A):• Non-financial Reporting (I): Frameworks• Non-financial Reporting (II): Implementation
Class 2.2: Case Study on Non-financial Reporting in Japan and the EU (+ Group discussions)Class 2.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with Invited Expert(s) IIWeek 3: Applied Cluster 3Class 3.1.1: SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNU-IAS/International Leaders III
Class 3.1.2: Contextualisation of Cluster 3 (incl. Q&A):• ESG Data I: Indicators and Metrics• ESG Data II: Data Services, Ratings, Scores, Indexes, and Labels
Class 3.2: Case Study on the reliability of ESG Ratings and Scores (+ Group discussions)Class 3.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with Invited Expert(s) III

Week 4: Applied Cluster 4Class 4.1.1: SDG Finance Policy Discussion with UNU-IAS/International Leaders IV
Class 4.1.2: Contextualisation of Cluster 4 (incl. Q&A):• Integrating ESG Factors into Investment Strategies• The ESG Investment Universe
Class 4.2: Case Study on ESG Strategies and the Investment Universe in Japan (+ Groupdiscussions)Class 4.3: Applied Workshop and Networking Seminar with Invited Expert(s) IV

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IX. Recommended Reports and Articles (Final readings will be communicated one week inadvance)•Schumacher, K., Chenet, H., & Volz, U. (2020). Sustainable finance in Japan. Journal of
Sustainable Finance and Investment, 10(2), 213-246.

•Schumacher, K. (2020a). The Shape of Green Fixed Income Investing to Come. The Journalof Environmental Investing , 10(1), 5-29. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3663308•Schumacher, K. (2020b). 'Competence greenwashing’ could be the next risk for the ESG
industry. Responsible Investor. https://www.responsible-investor.com/articles/competencegreenwashing-could-be-the-next-risk-for-the-esg-industry•

Schumacher, K. (2020c). Green investments need global standards and independent scientificreview. 584(7822), 524–524. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-02472-5

X. Course materials•

Required materials/readings are announced and/or will either be distributed directly in class orneed to be accessed by the participants via university or public resources after priorannouncement.

XI. Assessment criteria and methods••••

Pass/Fail assessment based on the following criteria
Assigned course readings, case study preparation, and active workshop participation
Individual contributions and group presentations during case study segments
Optional: 2500-word essay (topic will be communicated during Week 3)

XII. Awarding certificate
Upon successful completion of the course, UNU-IAS will award the Certificate of Completion of IC
Course on Sustainable Finance. The award ceremony plans to be organized at the last day of thecourse.

XIII. Target Audience and Prerequisites (i.e., required knowledge, skills, courses, etc.)•This course works as a complementary academic unit for graduate-level students in sustainabilityrelated areas but especially as a stand-alone training course for industry and businessstakeholders, directors, executives, policymakers, regulators, civil servants, and financial sector
professionals as the course workload is adjusted to MBA candidate knowledge levels.

•The course touches on key topics from the domains of sustainability, finance, management,(financial and non-financial) accounting, corporate finance (cost of capital, valuation), andmarketing. Course participants are expected to be familiar with the basic concepts from thesedomains. Therefore, participants should have a solid grasp of global business, management orfinance developments. Solid analytical skills and a decent level of English language
comprehension are required.

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