Climate Finance Conference

Economic activity is a key contributor to greenhouse gas emissions that affect the rate of global warming. There are many linkages between economic policies, household and business decisions, financial markets, and the rate of climate change. Asset markets are affected by climate change because many securities represent claims on long-term cash flows that can be affected by future climate conditions and government policies aimed at addressing climate change. 

Climate finance is the study of how financial markets and their participants are affected by climate change, how they adapt and respond to climate-related risks, and how they affect the flow of resources towards green modes of production in sectors such as agriculture, energy, and manufacturing. 

To promote research on all aspects of climate finance, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), with generous support from Norges Bank Investment Management, will convene a research conference in Cambridge, MA, on Friday, October 10, 2025. There will also be a pre-conference workshop for PhD students on the preceding day. The conference and workshop will be organized by NBER Research Associates Caroline Flammer (Columbia University) and Stefano Giglio (Yale University). 

The conference will focus on the interaction between climate change and capital markets. In particular, the organizers welcome research contributions that analyze how climate risks and nature risks affect a variety of asset markets, including real estate, equities, and government debt; examine the effects of  policies and practices of asset owners and firms on greenhouse gas emissions; consider the supply of finance for projects that adapt to or mitigate the risk of climate change; examine the interrelationship between the climate transition and geopolitics; and examine the effectiveness of climate actions. 

Examples of research topics that are within scope include, but are not limited to:

• How can exposure to the risks associated with climate change be measured, and how do these risks affect asset values? How correlated are climate-related risks and other portfolio risks, such as macroeconomic or geopolitical shocks? How does the presence of climate risks affect portfolio construction for long-horizon investors?
• How do traditional insurance markets spread the risks associated with climate change? How much do insurers charge to bear this risk? How does the cost of insurance compare with the capital market’s pricing of climate risk? What is the role of reinsurance markets, catastrophe bonds, and government-backed funds that serve as insurers of last resort in addressing climate risks?
• How important is climate model risk and how is it reflected in the risk premia associated with climate-exposed assets?
• Do investors exhibit non-pecuniary preferences toward climate risk, and if so, how do such preferences affect asset prices?
• How effective are climate actions by corporations and investors? To what extent can investors drive change in the real economy? For example, do divestment campaigns by some institutional investors who sell their holdings in firms that contribute to climate change have any impact on emissions of greenhouse gasses? What are the consequences of divestment of assets by listed firms, with new owners — typically not listed — continuing to operate these assets?
• How large is the market for “green securities” and what is the impact of such securities on overall greenhouse gas emissions? How does the design of such securities affect the market demand for them and the behavior of the firms that issue them? 
• What is the relationship between climate risks and nature risks such as biodiversity risk? How do these risks interact in determining asset valuations and optimal policies? 
• What are the opportunities, risks, limitations, and implications of investments and business practices for the global distribution of resources, social inequality within and across countries, food security and poverty alleviation, conflicts and migration flows, and shifts in economic power between nations? 
• How do public and private policies, including financial market regulations, affect the flow of capital to innovative solutions in climate tech, renewable energy, and nature-based solutions, especially in lower-income countries? What are the opportunities and challenges?

The organizers welcome finished papers as well as early-stage papers that will be completed by late September, 2025. Upload submissions by 11:59pm ET on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. 

Theoretical as well as empirical papers are welcome. Submissions are encouraged from researchers with and without NBER affiliation, from academia, government, or the private sector, and from early career scholars. Please do not submit papers that have been accepted for publication and will be published by the time of the conference. 

Authors of papers selected for the program will be notified in May 2025. Please direct questions about this conference to confer@nber.org.