Abstract & Overview
This chapter delves into the role of finance and investment in the context of sustainability. It considers the importance of the financial markets in successfully addressing sustainability challenges, and how global capital has contributed to the challenges we face today. It describes the array of current initiatives through which investing and banking communities engage in sustainability, and the emergence of sustainability-oriented financial instruments. Particular attention is paid to the sustainable investing movement that has emerged out of the long-established field of socially responsible investment. The chapter explores the impact of sustainability on funds, analysis, investment strategies, and other elements of financial markets. Finally, it addresses the issue of whether we are progressing towards the kind of changes in investment behaviour that some aspects of sustainability seem to require.