Transforming Finance for Society

Finance stands at a crossroads. As our economies confront climate change, widening inequalities, and the risks of technological innovation, this conference brings together experts and thought leaders to explore how the financial system can be reconnected with the needs of society.

We invite scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to rethink the foundations of finance, not as an end in itself, but as a means to support a stable, equitable, and sustainable future. Together, we ask how finance can be transformed to serve people and the planet, and what it will take to get there.

Highlights include:

Hans Stegeman is Chief Economist and Group Director Impact & Economics at Triodos Bank and fellow of the Erasmus Platform for Sustainable Value Creation. His work focuses on sustainability transitions, economic transformation and the institutional changes needed to align economic activity with environmental and societal goals.

Prof. Dr. Ellen Quigley - Research Professor and Co Director of Finance for Systemic Change, University of Cambridge

Léon Wijnands -Head of Private Banking & Wealth, ING

Martin Lok - Executive Director, Capitals Coalition

Dr. Yannis Dafermos - Reader in Economics and the Head of the Department of Economics at SOAS University of London

Julia Symon - Head of Research & Advocacy, Finance Watch

Prof. Dr. Dirk Schoenmaker - Professor of Banking and Finance, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam

Info: Welcome by dr. Nathan de Arriba-Sellier, director of the Erasmus Platform for Sustainable Value Creation. Opening words by prof. Aukje Hassoldt, dean of Rotterdam School of Management.

Info: Hans Stegeman is Chief Economist and Group Director Impact & Economics at Triodos Bank, and fellow of the Erasmus Platform for Sustainable Value Creation. His work focuses on sustainability transitions, post growth economics and the institutional changes needed to align the economy with planetary boundaries.

Info: Klaudia Prodani is PhD Candidate at the University of Twente. Her research examines the rise of commercial biodiversity footprinting for corporate and financial actors as well as nature-related economic and financial risk modelling by central banks.

Info: Ellen Quigley is Research Professor and Co Director of Finance for Systemic Change at the University of Cambridge. Her research focuses on sustainable finance, climate risk and the development of a more sustainable and equitable financial system.
Léon Wijnands, Head of Sustainability, ING Bank Netherlands. Léon has held senior leadership roles at ING in private banking, wealth management and sustainability. His experience includes integrating sustainability into the core activities of the bank and working on organisational transformation and leadership.
Martin Lok is Executive Director at the Capitals Coalition, where he works on policy, valuation and integrating different forms of capital into decision making. He previously spent more than 30 years as a policymaker for the Dutch government, including in environmental, nature and green growth policy.

Info: Anne Kervers is postdoctoral researcher at Utrecht University's School of Economics who explores which financial and economic structures can help to redefine economic practices in order to minimise climate breakdown and social injustices.

Info: Paola D’Orazio is Associate Professor of Economics at IÉSEG School of Management. Her research focuses on sustainable finance, macro financial risks, financial stability and the role of central banks and supervisors in the low carbon transition.

Info: Yannis Dafermos is Reader in Economics and the Head of the Department of Economics at SOAS University of London. His research interests lie in ecological and financial macroeconomics, climate finance, climate-aligned development, inequalities, and the political economy of the green transition. Julia Symon is Head of Research & Advocacy at Finance Watch. Her work focuses on financial policy and advocacy aimed at making the financial system better serve society and the wider economy.
Dirk Schoenmaker is Professor of Banking and Finance at Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam. His research focuses on sustainable finance, banking, financial systems and the transition towards a sustainable economy.

Event venue & nearby stays

Erasmus University Rotterdam, Burgemeester Oudlaan 50, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.

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