The Graduate Institute’s Centre for Finance and Development (CFD) launched the Swiss Lab for Sustainable Finance (SL4SF) in September 2021, with the generous support of the Pictet Foundation.

The Lab is a multi-stakeholder and transdisciplinary lab that will focus on how SDG-related goals can be met through sustainable finance and multi-stakeholder partnerships, including those in more fragile settings. The Lab will advance sustainable finance research and practice, focusing on fulfilling the SDG goals.

The Lab’s founding members are the Graduate Institute, E4S (EPFL, UNIL and IMD), IMD, University of Basel, University of Geneva, University of Ghana, Sustainable Finance Geneva, the ICRC, the IFC and the Economics of Mutuality.

This collaborative effort is the first of its kind in Switzerland, bringing an international dimension and anchoring the Lab’s presence within “International Geneva” by partnering with international organisations (IFC, ICRC) and universities from low-income countries. The Swiss Lab for Sustainable Finance will be joining forces with other national sustainability labs to establish an international “network of labs”, enhancing Switzerland’s position as a powerhouse of sustainability.

According to Professor Nathan Sussman – Pictet Chair in Finance and Development, Director of the Centre for Finance and Development and who is leading the effort – “we aspire, as part of our vision, to help establish norms of sustainability and responsible finance, in Switzerland and internationally. Together, as a team, we aim to conduct applied actionable research to address the challenges of financing the SDGs, measuring impact and training the next generation of social scientists in sustainable finance.”