Call for papers

University of Zurich’s Department of Banking and Finance
February 13 and 14, 2020, Zurich, Switzerland 

Climate change poses severe risks for our societies and financial markets. At the same time, financial markets can potentially help financial actors to hedge climate change risks and regulators to mitigate its effects. Finance research integrating insights from climate science can spur the development of new methodologies and results to address better these issues affecting the welfare of current and future generations.  

The Department of Banking and Finance (DBF) of the University of Zurich has been at the forefront of climate finance research for many years. Recently, climate finance has gained traction as a new field, but many links between financial markets and climate change remain yet to be explored. The workshop aims at promoting a platform for young researchers to present their work and at the same time, discuss and develop new ideas. It will represent an opportunity for discussions on research questions around climate finance. 

Target group  

The workshop is primarily intended for Ph.D. students and young scholars to present their research and receive feedback from distinguished faculty. We welcome the submission of both complete working papers and extended abstracts. 

The number of presented papers will be limited at 15 (with no parallel sessions) to allow for in-depth discussions. 

Areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Financial institutions and climate change
• Financial stability and climate risk
• Hedging climate risk
• Climate responsibility in asset management
• Climate risk and asset pricing
• Effects of climate policy on financial markets
• How the preference of retail clients affect the decisions of institutional investors
• Corporate disclosure regarding carbon and climate risk exposures
• Climate change and corporate decisions (e.g., R&D, capital structure, etc.)

Faculty and organizers 

The workshop is organized and coordinated by Jonathan Krakow and Stefano Ramelli. 

The workshop will be structured in four tracks chaired by Prof. Felix Kübler, Prof. Markus Leippold, Prof. Steven Ongena, and Prof. Alexander F. Wagner. The Session Chairs will discuss the most recent developments of climate finance and provide avenues for future research.

Also, the workshop will host an evening panel discussion on Thursday, February 13 to discuss the role of climate finance in policy-making and society. Participants from the University of Zurich will include Prof. Stefano Battiston and Prof. Marc Chesney.

Submission process 

Submission is now closed. The workshop will take place at the University of Zurich. There is no submission or participation fee. Catering and organizational costs will be covered by funding from the Department of Banking and Finance of the University of Zurich.

Preliminary results are not pre-requisites for a successful application. The evaluation will be made based on the potential impact of the extended abstracts or working papers. 

To apply for the workshop, please send your working paper or extended abstract to climatefinanceworkshop@bf.uzh.ch by November 30, 2019. All candidates will be notified of acceptance by December 14, 2019.

Timeline

November 30, 2019: Submission deadline
December 14, 2019: Selection notice
January 31, 2019: Submission deadline finalized papers
February 13 and 14, 2020: PhD Workshop on Climate Finance

For more information, please write to climatefinanceworkshop@bf.uzh.ch