This thought-provoking book introduces a financial economics perspective to the topic of eco-innovations and, more generally, sociotechnical transitions. It develops a model that illustrates how financial constraints can prevent the development of eco-innovations within companies and hinder the transition process towards a more sustainable regime. Edgardo Sica presents a review of the state of the art, as well as new data from original surveys aimed at testing the impact of financial constraints on eco-innovative decisions at radical and niche levels.

Sustainability thinking is rapidly gaining traction. It offers an inspiring vision for the future of the world and provides significant business and investment opportunities. Based on insights from over 300 empirical studies, this book explores the possibilities in the field of renewable energy finance, carbon trading, and sustainable investing. In addition, it describes innovative finance mechanisms – such as green bonds and peer-to-peer lending – that may further spur environmental and social sustainability. By taking an empirical, fact-based approach, this book aims to provide investors, business executives, and policymakers with a more thorough understanding of how sustainable finance can create value for business and society. Key words: Sustainable finance, renewable energy finance, cleantech, green investing, sustainable investments, responsible investments, carbon trading, carbon finance, ESG, impact investing.

Combining theory, empirical data, and policy this book provides a fresh analysis of sustainable finance. It explains the sustainability challenges for corporate investment and shows how finance can steer funding to certain companies and projects without sacrificing return, speeding up the transistion to a sustainable economy.

There has been a growing concern about the social and environmental risks which have come along with the progress achieved through a variety of mutually intertwined modernization processes. This book addresses how to understand the dynamics and governance of long term transformative change towards sustainable development.

The world is currently undergoing an historic energy transition, driven by increasingly stringent decarbonisation policies and rapid advances in low-carbon technologies. The large-scale shift to low-carbon energy is disrupting the global energy system, impacting whole economies, and changing the political dynamics within and between countries. This open access book, written by leading energy scholars, examines the economic and geopolitical implications of the global energy transition, from both regional and thematic perspectives. The first part of the book addresses the geopolitical implications in the world’s main energy-producing and energy-consuming regions, while the second presents in-depth case studies on selected issues, ranging from the geopolitics of renewable energy, to the mineral foundations of the global energy transformation, to governance issues in connection with the changing global energy order. Given its scope, the book will appeal to researchers in energy, climate change and international relations, as well as to professionals working in the energy industry.

In this insightful book, Frank W. Geels provides an advanced and evidenced introduction to one of the most important and dynamic topics in contemporary debates on how to address grand challenges like climate change and biodiversity loss.

The speed with which the various economies recover from the Covid-19 pandemic will significantly determine the economic pressure placed on the environment in the medium-to-long-term. Furthermore, the pandemic has highlighted the strong interrelations between natural and societal systems, with societal resilience depending on a resilient environmental support system. In this context, the book argues that the pandemic represents a wake-up call for financial systems to be better prepared for the climate crisis and social risk, and has provided a stimulus to scale down the reliance of the global economy on fossil fuels. The first part of the book provides a deep and creative discussion between leading international researchers and experts on the policy options and financial instruments which can help to catalyze the green finance transition in the post-Covid-19 era. The contributions show that sustainable finance is emerging as a powerful tool to advance the transition towards a more environmentally and socially sustainable economic model. Instruments such as sovereign green bonds, green securities, and other sustainability-related securities can play a significant role in the post-Covid-19 world to fund economic stimulus and to lead the way to new and more sustainable future. The second part of the book supports the debate by highlighting a number of selected case studies on financing transitions in different regional contexts including Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. The book marks a significant contribution to the literature on environmental economics and finance, climate change, and sustainability transitions.