---

This edited collection brings together leading theoretical and applied research with the intent to design a sustainable global financial future. The contributors argue that our world cannot move toward sustainability, address climate change, reverse environmental degradation, and improve human well-being without aligning the financial system with sustainable development goals like those outlined by the United Nations. Such a system would: a) be environmentally and socially responsible; b) align with planetary boundaries; c) manage natural resources sustainably; d) avoid doing more harm than good; and e) be resilient and adaptable to changing conditions. The overarching theme in this collection of chapters is a response to the worldwide, supranational sustainable finance discussions about how we can transition to a new socio-ecological system where finance, human well-being, and planetary health are recognized as being highly intertwined.

---

1. Introduction; Thomas Walker, Stéfanie D. Kibsey, and Rohan Crichton

Part I- System and Sector-level Transitions towards Sustainability
2. An Alternative Finance Approach for a More Sustainable Financial System; Rosella Carè, Annarita Trotta, and Alessandro Rizzello 3. Social and Environmental Responsibility in the Banking Industry: A Focus on Commercial Business; Beatriz Fernandez Olit, Marta de la Cuesta González, and Francisco Pablo Holgado 4. Seeking Greener Pastures: Exploring the Impact for Investors of ESG Integration in the Infrastructure Asset Class; Roy R. Sengupta, Tessa Hebb, and Hakan Mustafa 5. Pricing Carbon: Integrating Promise, Practice, and Lessons Learned from the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX); Paula DiPerna
Part II- Innovations in Best Practices, Tools, and Financial Products
6. Designing Carbon: Neutral Investment Portfolios; Gianfranco Gianfrate 7. Sustainability Stress Testing the Financial System: Challenges and Approaches; Dieter Gramlich 8. Responsible Investment Requires a Proxy Voting System Responsive to Retail Investors; Ian Robertson 9. The Creation of Social Impact Credits: Funding for Social Profit Organizations; Marcel Minutolo, John Stakeley, and Chloe Mills 10. Crowdfunding Sustainable Enterprises as a Form of Collective Action; Helen Toxopeus and Karen Maas 11. Palm Oil: Mitigating Material Financial Risks via Sustainability; Gabriel Thoumi
Part III- The Role of Regulation, Standards, and Policy
12. Towards a Theory of Sustainable Finance; Joakim Sandberg 13. Mobilizing Early-Stage Investments for an Innovation-Led Sustainability Transition; Friedemann H. J. Polzin, Ulrika Stavlöt, and Mark W. J. L. Sanders 14. Financial Sector Sustainability Regulations and Voluntary Codes of Conduct: Do They Help to Create a More Sustainable Financial System?; Olaf Weber 15. Why Self-Commitment Is Not Enough: On a Regulated Minimum Standard for Ecologically and Socially Responsible Financial Products and Services; Andreas Oehler, Matthias Horn, and Stefan Wendt

---