Masterclass: Environmental Data in Sustainable Finance
Course Directors:
Beatrice Crona, Science director, Professor, Stockholm Resilience Centre
Christophe Christiaen, Head of Innovation and Impact, CGFI/Head of Spatial Finance Initiative
About
Financial institutions and regulators are increasingly turning to environmental data and models to assess financial risks, opportunities, and impacts. From climate projections to biodiversity indicators, these datasets are used directly or embedded within third-party analytics, ratings, and scores. Yet many of these tools were originally developed for scientific research at broad spatial and temporal scales, not for asset-level or short-term financial analysis. This disconnect can lead to misinterpretation, misplaced confidence in uncertain results, and ultimately, decisions that may not reflect the true nature of environmental risks.
As the use of environmental analytics becomes more widespread in finance, there is a growing opportunity for professionals working at this intersection to build literacy around environmental data quality. Just as financial analysts are expected to understand the reliability and assumptions behind financial metrics, similar scrutiny is valuable when interpreting environmental data. Understanding the limitations, uncertainties, and methodological choices behind these models can help ensure that environmental insights are used appropriately. Without this, there is a risk of undermining environmental sustainability efforts, distorting market signals, and misdirecting capital away from those solutions that most effectively reduce risks and impacts.
Developing a foundational understanding of the scope and limitations of various environmental datasets is especially valuable for public and third sector professionals who influence the frameworks and incentives shaping financial and corporate behaviour. This knowledge can support not only their own assessments and decision-making, but also their ability to critically evaluate the environmental data and analytics reported by financial institutions and corporations. Without such insight, there is a risk that flawed assumptions may be embedded into policy or regulatory frameworks, potentially affecting long-term environmental resilience and economic stability. This masterclass provides an opportunity to build that understanding, enabling more transparent, credible, and effective engagement with environmental data in the context of sustainable finance.
This Masterclass is delivered in partnership with the FinBio programme.
Format
4x sessions of 90 minutes
Online
Dates: 9 March – 13 March 2026
Session 1: Decision-Useful Environmental Data – Pressures vs. Outcomes
Session 2: Observed Environmental Data in Sustainable Finance – Opportunities and Limitations
Session 3: Modelled Environmental Data in Sustainable Finance – Scalability vs Uncertainty
Session 4: Decision-Useful Environmental Data – Gaps and Future Developments
Fees
- Free
Applications
Places on this course are strictly limited to those who have primary employment in:
- central or local government
- regulatory agencies
- supervisory authorities
- central banks
- multilateral institutions
- non-profit civil society organisations
- registered charities
- philanthropic organisations
Evidence of this may be requested and required.
To apply please complete the application form, for both individual and group bookings. We aim to respond within 10 working days of receipt of the application.
Objectives
This masterclass will:
- Introduce types of environmental datasets, models and tools being used within different sustainable finance use cases today
- Familiarise participants with uncertainty in datasets and models and the need to scrutinize environmental data quality
- Empower participants to critically reflect on the remits and limitations of different environmental datasets/models when designing policy, funding/supporting/building applications related to sustainable finance.
Masterclass syllabus
Session 1: Decision-Useful Environmental Data – Pressures vs. Outcomes
Purpose: Highlight the increasing importance of environmental science and data within sustainable finance today, what makes data decision useful and why it matters for public and third sector actors.
- Introduction to environmental crisis and key terminology
- Biodiversity/nature-related tools including the tension between relevance and reliability of data and distinguishing between data that reflects practices vs outcomes
- Reflections on the construction and use of environmental metrics and tools
- Data and tool quality considerations and implications
Session 2: Observed Environmental Data in Sustainable Finance – Opportunities and Limitations
Purpose: Introduce different types of observational datasets, how they are or can be used in sustainable finance applications, and critically reflect on their relevance and reliability.
- Introduction to satellite remote sensing and other observed datasets, remits and limitations
- Comparison availability, strengths and weaknesses across observed data types and where they sit across the relevance-reliability spectrum
- Overview of observed data applications in sustainable finance across private, public and third sector
Session 3: Modelled Environmental Data in Sustainable Finance – Scalability vs Uncertainty
Purpose: Introduce different types of modelled datasets, how they are or can be used in sustainable finance applications, and critically reflect on their relevance and reliability.
- Introduction to environmental financial analytics value chain
- Introduction to models, how do they work, different approaches, forward versus backward looking models
- Uncertainty and assumptions in models and their implications
- Overview of climate and environmental models, their strengths, limitations and where they sit across the relevance-reliability spectrum
- Modelled data applications in sustainable finance across private, public and third sector
Session 4: Decision-Useful Environmental Data – Gaps and Future Developments
Purpose: Reflect on the environmental data landscape today, how it serves the need of the financial sector in terms of decision-usefulness, which gaps remain and how they are being or could be addressed.
- Overview of practitioner/policy/academic debates on environmental data
- Decision-usefulness of currently available environmental data and disclosures, data gaps, reasonable alternatives and role of public actors in shaping data standards, disclosure frameworks, etc.
- Decision usefulness of environmental data in current workflows and potential alternatives
Download Course Brochure
OxSFG was established in 2012 and is a multidisciplinary research centre working to be the world’s best place for research and teaching on sustainable finance and investment. We work globally across asset classes, finance professions, and with different parts of the financial system.