by the MicroCapital Team - Agriculture / Rural Finance, Green Energy, Trends/Challenges -

SPECIAL REPORT: Education for a More Sustainable World, by Dr Barbara Drexler, Frankfurt School of Finance and Management

SVGs? Dr Barbara Drexler, Sustainable World Academy SDTs? What on earth do you mean? Back in January 2019, when the idea was born to launch the Frankfurt School’s Sustainable World Academy, I was asked many times to explain the abbreviation for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – even by highly educated and well-read colleagues and friends.

Well, a lot has certainly changed since. 2019 will go down in history for Greta Thunberg and her Fridays for Future movement, unprecedented climate events – heatwaves, storms, unbreathable air, dying coral, bushfires and locust swarms – and, finally, a growing sense of urgency. (Literally) every schoolchild understands that climate action is urgently needed if the world is to be comfortably inhabitable beyond 2050. However, it is far less clear how change will be brought about without hampering economic growth or undercutting the growing prosperity in emerging and developing economies.

In other words, the timing for the launch of our Sustainable World Academy (SWA) was brilliant! At SWA we strongly believe that, in fact, it is possible to advance the UN’s SDGs in a pro-business way – or as they say in English: it is possible to have your cake and eat it too.

SWA offers professional and executive courses that do not waste time with lofty phrases, but teach hands-on knowledge and skills on how to finance and manage a better future for all. Our value proposition is to educate bankers, microfinance professionals and leaders of other businesses dedicated to sustainability, as well as policymakers and students about concrete techniques that can deliver equitable and environmentally conscientious growth.

Over the past 10 years, we have expanded our portfolio from a mere three to a range of 16 programmes. SWA offers courses either online or on campus, and all are directly linked the advancement of SDGs. For example, our e-campus programme “Certified Expert in Agricultural Finance” provides participants with tools to promote No Poverty (SDG 1), Zero Hunger (SDG 2), Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG 12) and Life on Land (SDG 15) by providing small to medium-sized agri-businesses with access to finance. Each of these tools has been field-tested by our course developers.

In general, our courses are clustered in six rubrics, the two most important of which are MSME Finance and Green Finance. The SDGs addressed in these courses are No Poverty (SDG 1), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8), Reduced Inequalities (SDG 10) as well as Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG 7), Climate Action (SDG 13) and Life on Land (SDG 15). The other rubrics are Risk & Treasury, Agri­cultural Finance, Leadership & Management, and Digital Transforma­tion. Beginning in September 2020, we will offer a Master of Leadership in Sustainable Finance – online, which will build leadership skills that enable individuals to create sustainable change on national and global levels.

Frankfurt School’s International Advisory Services has been a market leader in consulting projects related to financial inclusion since 1990. Through these courses, we are bringing our field expertise into academics, thus bridging the gap between education and sustainability. In fact, we are committed to expanding SWA to deliver material on all 17 SDGs by 2022.

It has been my true pleasure to head SWA this past year. Our colorful and ambitious team has shaped the knowledge and skills of more than 3,000 participants from more than 120 countries during 2019. It is quite a privilege to spend each working day promoting two of my great passions in life: education and sustainability.

I look forward to the adventures of the new decade!

Dr Barbara Drexler (pictured) is the Head of the Sustainable World Academy at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, which is also the sponsor of this feature. In addition, Dr Drexler serves as the programme director for the Master of Leadership in Sustainable Finance – online. She is passionate about bringing about sustainable change and firmly believes that education can play an important role in this change.

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