[August 2023] Certificate in CFA-ESG Investment (Environmental, Social, and Governance)

ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is a framework used by financial investors to assess a company’s sustainability and ethical impact. The Environmental aspect evaluates a company’s stewardship of nature and climate change, Social criteria look at relationships with employees and communities, and Governance involves leadership and shareholder rights. This approach helps investors identify potential risks and opportunities beyond traditional financial analysis.

Orignated from the on-site participation of COP27 in Eygpt, I learned that the ESG has a very strong connection with the scientific research on climate change that I am currently engaged in, especially in climate change impact and climate risk assessment, which belongs to the environment scope of the ESG (e.g., climate physical risk etc.). Therefore, with the strong motivation and curiosity, I passed the evaluation and successfully hold the Certificate in ESG Investing from the CFA Institute in August 2023.

As one of the real practices in this topic after holding the certification, I was honored to lead an ESG practice project in Nanjian, Yunnan Province, China, in August 2024 (supported by Tsinghua University). This project aims to explore sustainable development governance among tea industry companies (茶业企业) in the background of ESG disclosure policies (e.g., SASA, GRI). Through questionnaires, visits to the companies, and discussions with relevant government departments, this project was started by defining a localized ESG disclosure framework for these companies, with a particular focus on analyzing the climate-related physical risks (e.g., drought, heavy rain, heatwaves etc.). Then, we performed the assessment of ESG ratings for these companies. Finally, we proposed several strategies and recommendations to enhance the future ESG ratings and sustainable development of the represented tea companies in Nanjian, Yunnan, China.”

[Chinese Version 中文版]

得益于2022年线下参与联合国气候变化大会（COP27），我了解到ESG（环境、社会、管治）行业和我目前从事的气候变化科研有非常强的联系，尤其是在气候变化影响和气候风险评估这方面（例如气候实体风险、气候转型风险、气象防灾减灾）。因此，在强烈的动机和好奇心的驱使下，我于2023年8月成功考取了CFA协会颁发的ESG投资证书。

在获得相关证书之后，我于2024年8月有幸作为课题领导者参与了一项在云南大理南涧县举办的和ESG相关的社会实践项目（由清华大学支持）。这个项目主要探讨茶业企业在环境-社会-管治（ESG）披露政策支撑下，如何在未来进行可持续发展治理。我们通过调研问卷、走访企业和政府相关部门等方式，首先定义了茶企的ESG披露框架，然后重点分析茶业企业所面临的气候实体风险，并对相关的企业进行ESG评级。最后针对对南涧县的茶企未来的ESG评级提升提出了多条措施和建议。