Executive-Friendly Program | High Impact Format

Key Highlights of IIT Kanpur Masters in Climate Finance and Sustainability

  • SelectionBased on academic and professional background and test, interview where necessary. No GATE required.
  • High Impact Format Weekend-only Live interactive sessions coupled with self-paced learning.
  • Executive Friendly Schedule Learn while you earn, with the flexibility to complete the program between 1 - 3 years.
  • Career Advancement and Networking Support for placement and facilitation of incubation at IIT Kanpur's Incubation Centre.
  • IIT Kanpur Alumni Status Become an IIT Kanpur alumni with access to all the alumni privileges.
  • Credits Transfer Waiver of upto 60 credits for higher education (MTech/PhD) at IIT Kanpur.

Designed for individuals passionate about addressing climate change while bridging the gap between finance and environmental responsibility through carbon management.

Admission Process

  • Application
    Register with Mobile Number
    Submit Details
    Remit Application Fee
    Upload Documents
  • Selection
    Application Review
    Interview
  • Admission

Class Start - January 2025

* Selection test differs for every programme

e-Masters in Climate Finance and Sustainability Course Overview

Climate change concerns have given rise to the field of carbon finance, giving sufficient emphasis on carbon management through cap-and-trade and carbon offsets. There is a rising effort across the globe to develop an emission trading platform like EU-ETS, and India, after enacting the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022, is planning to have its carbon trading platform.

Carbon Management is a trending field, and implementing National Determined Contributions (NDCs), which is at the heart of the Paris Agreement, will play a critical role, especially for carbon-intensive firms, such as power, cement, and oil companies.

Considering the rise of climate concerns, climate finance is expected to create a strong demand for carbon management professionals across industries through either voluntary carbon market or carbon accounting standards. All these fields are expected to grow in India and abroad.

Another interrelated domain seeking much attention is the ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) disclosure standards, which vary across countries. There is a strong demand for ESG professionals in the country, and specialized training is one of the main demands of the industry. The triple bottom line – profits, people, and planet focus has created opportunities for different roles and offers scope for certified ESG professionals for consulting firms, construction, real estate, investment firms, manufacturing, ancillary industries, and NGOs.

There is also a massive mismatch between industry demand and the supply of expert and domain-specialized professionals in the trending fields of carbon management and ESG. In order to fill this gap, IIT Kanpur has developed a specialized masters degree programme on carbon management and sustainable finance.

The Masters in Climate Finance and Sustainability course is designed to provide in-depth training and exposure to carbon management, ESG, and green finance in a one-year, fully online programme. The flexible curriculum and self-paced learning opportunities are salient features suitable for working professionals. The live and interactive sessions are highly useful for engaging in discussion and practical learning.

The masters programme on carbon management and sustainable finance also offers an opportunity to be part of IIT Kanpur’s active academic environment through a campus immersion program that includes visits to various facilities, including mentorship for startups and placement assistance.

Graduation Ceremony at IIT Kanpur Campus

Outcomes

  • Harness the power of Climate Finance for a sustainable future
  • Get an eMasters Degree
    from IIT Kanpur
  • Become a part of IIT Kanpur's
    alumni network
  • Learn from a leading research
    faculty group
  • Receive mentorship and career support from the
    IIT Kanpur placement cell
  • Incubation support for promising
    startup initiatives
  • Opportunity to forge a meaningful network
    with diverse professionals

Faculty

Acquire insights from seasoned faculty members blending extensive industry experience with academic proficiency in Climate Finance and Sustainability.

  • Wasim Ahmad
    Post-Doctorate (LSE), PhD (Delhi University)
    Associate Professor, Economic Sciences
    Research Expertise: Climate and Clean Energy Finance, International Finance and Financial Econometrics
  • Mohammad Arshad Rahman
    PhD (University of California, Irvine)
    Associate Professor, Department of Economic Sciences
    Research Expertise: Theoretical and Applied Econometrics: Bayesian Econometrics, Quantile and Discrete Choice Models, Applications to energy and environment
  • Preeti Roy
    Post-Doctorate (IIT Kanpur), PhD (JMI, New Delhi)
    Assistant Professor, Department of Management Studies & Industrial Engineering
    Research Expertise: Clean Energy Finance and Sustainability
  • Rajeev Jindal
    PhD (IIT Delhi)
    Professor of Practice, Department of Sustainable Energy Engineering
    Research Expertise: Climate Change and Sustainability
  • Parvati Neelakantan
    Ph.D. (UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, Dublin)
    Assistant Professor, Department of Management Sciences
    Research Expertise: Financial Econometrics and Machine Learning
  • Sukumar Vellakkal Sukumar Vellakkal
    Post-doc (Oxford University), PhD in Economics (ISEC), MSc in Health Economics and Policy (Erasmus University Rotterdam) & MA in Economics (Calicut)
    Associate Professor, Department of Economics Science
    Research Expertise: Health Economics and Policy, Macroeconomic Policies and Health, Impact Evaluation

Guest faculty from Industry

  • Indranil Chatterjee
    MBA (FMS) Delhi
    Vice President - Strategy
    India Energy Exchange (IEX), New Delhi
  • Abhinav Jindal
    PhD (IIM Indore)
    Senior Faculty, Power Management Institute (PMI)
  • Ashish Gawali
    QFRM (IIT Kanpur), MS in Software Systems (BITS Pilani)
    Founder at XFi Technologies, Pune, India
    Ex-VP Data Science & Engineering at Turtlemint, Pune, India
  • Manish Dabkara
    International Carbon Markets Leader
    Chairman And MD At EKIESL (First Public Listed Co. At Global Stock Ex's)
    TED Speaker
  • Taghizadeh-Hesary Farhad
    PhD (Keio University)
    Associate Professor, Tokai University
    Research Expertise: Green Finance and Sustainability

e-Masters in Climate Finance and
Sustainability Curriculum

Immerse yourself in IIT Kanpur's e-Masters in Climate Finance and Sustainability curriculum, thoughtfully designed by subject matter experts. This comprehensive program seamlessly integrates theoretical depth with practical application, fostering hands-on learning to master sustainable practices through a blend of formal rigor and practical engagement.

Modules

The eMasters in Climate Finance and Sustainability encompasses a comprehensive curriculum thoughtfully divided into 12 Core Modules. The modules have been meticulously curated to provide participants with an insight into how climate change can affect corporate financing decisions and value.

  • Business Environment & Strategy
  • Foundations of Finance
  • Data Analysis in R and Python
  • Introduction to Alternative Finance
  • Climate Change Finance and Investment
  • Carbon Pricing, Trading, and Markets
  • Introduction to Sustainable Finance
  • Sustainable Reporting and Disclosure Practices
  • Machine Learning for Climate and Carbon Finance
  • Green Bonds – Pricing and Valuations
  • Financial Modelling to Clean Energy Products
  • Project – 1

Detailed Curriculum

Immersive Learning Format

  • Live Interactive Sessions
  • Case study-based Learning
  • Projects
  • Periodic Assessments
  • Online Examination
  • Campus Visit
  • Online LIVE and self-paced sessions are delivered
    through AI-powered iPearl.ai
  • Weekly/ Bi-weekly live interaction as per the
    faculty availability
  • Apply learnings through projects while working in teams and
    establish a peer network
  • Final module-level exams will be
    conducted online
  • Opportunity to meet experts and experience the IITK campus
    during campus visits

Eligibility

  • Bachelor’s Degree (3 /4 years program) or PG Degree in Engineering, Science, Economics, Commerce, Agriculture, MBA with at least 55% marks or 5.5/10 CPI.
  • Minimum of 2 years of full time work experience (You need not be currently employed to be eligible).
  • Candidates with relevant experience will be preferred.

Ideal for

  • Financial analysts, investment managers, and professionals working in banking, insurance, or asset management who want to specialize in sustainable finance and integrate environmental considerations into financial decision-making.
  • Policy Makers and Government Officials involved in environmental regulations and climate initiatives who desire to grasp the financial aspects of sustainability and design effective policies.
  • Professionals working in sustainability/environmental management roles who wish to deepen their understanding of finance principles to drive sustainable initiatives.

Masters in Climate Finance and Sustainability: Fees

Application fee ₹1500 (to be paid during application submission)

Fee structure for candidates opting to complete the program in 1 year.

Details Amount
Registration Fee
To be paid within 1 week of selection		 ₹40,000
Admission Fee
To be paid to complete enrollment		 ₹1,60,000
Module Fee
To be paid at the beginning of every quarter based on no. of modules selected
(Total 12 Modules) 		₹5,40,000
₹45,000 per module
Quarter Fee*
To be paid at the beginning of every quarter		 ₹60,000
₹15,000 per quarter
Total Fee ₹8,00,000

*For every additional quarter, fees of Rs 15,000 will be applicable.

For Example

Candidates opting to complete the program in 5 quarters need to pay an additional fee of ₹15,000

Candidates opting to complete the program in 11 quarters need to pay an additional fee of ₹1,05,000

All other fees remain the same.

Fees paid are non-refundable(after a certain time period) and non-transferable.

About IIT Kanpur

Established in 1959 by the Government of India, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) is a globally acclaimed university for world-class education and research in science, engineering, management and humanities. We aim to provide leadership in technological innovation for the growth of India.

  • Ranked 5th in Innovation, 4th in Engineering and 4th in Overall Category by NIRF 2024
  • Built on world-class academic research culture
  • Offers various undergraduate, post-graduate, integrated, and research programs in the field of engineering, science, management, and design
IIT Kanpur Online Masters Degree Courses

State-of-the-Art Digital Learning Platform

The eMasters Program by IIT Kanpur will be delivered on iPearl.ai, a State-of-the-Art digital learning platform, powered by TalentSprint. iPearl.ai, highly rated for its user experience, is a direct-to-device platform that works seamlessly on any internet-connected device and provides a single-sign on experience for all your learning needs including recorded videos, reading material, live interactive sessions, assignments, quizzes, discussion forums, virtual lounges and more.

Frequently Asked Questions

The core modules include

Business Environment and Strategy

  • Macroeconomics: Key Macroeconomic Variables and their relevance to Business, Basics on Monetary and Fiscal Policy, India's Economic Environment, Green Banking and Sustainability, Central bank vs Government in Climate Risk Management
  • Understanding Open Economy: Balance of Payment, Capital and Current Account, Exchange Rate Determination, Business Cycles, International Trade, Environment, and Climate Change: CBAM – Free Trade, WTO Negotiations
  • Business Environment: Concepts, Internal and External environmental variables, Introduction to Risks - Political, Legal, Environmental, Technological, Reputational Risks
  • Strategic Management: Environmental Scanning, Industry Analysis, Internal Scanning, Sustainable Value Chain, Product Life Cycle
  • Strategy Formulation: Business Strategy and Corporate Strategy (climate change), Competitive Tactics and Strategies, Basic types of Strategic Alliances, Portfolio Analysis of Business Units or Products offered by a Company
  • Case Analysis: Detailed procedure involved in a Case Analysis

Foundations of Finance

  • Measuring the Time Value of Money: Future and Present Values, Annuities, Perpetuities, Compounding and Measuring Returns, Time Value of Money v/s Sustainability
  • Risk and Return Analysis: Basics of Portfolio Construction, Mean-Variance Framework, Optimal Portfolio Analysis with Riskless Asset, Capital Allocation Framework, Optional Portfolios with Multiple Assets, Riskiness of Portfolio and Types
  • Fixed Income Securities: Bond and its Types, Valuations, Yield Curve and Duration, Green Bonds
  • Derivatives: Mechanics of Futures Markets, Forwards Contracts, Valuations, Options - Payoff structure, Basic Trading strategies using Options, Vanilla Swaps
  • Basic Accounting of Firms: Financial Statements, Income Statement, Balance sheet, Cash flow Statement, Discussion on CSR Funds
  • Financial Analysis Techniques: Financial Ratios - Activity, Liquidity, Solvency, Profitability, and Valuation Ratios, Capital Structure of the Firm, Business Risk and Scenario and Simulation Analysis, Environmental Costs, and Negative Externalities

Data Analysis in R and Python

  • Introduction: Overview: Different types of Data (structured and unstructured), Basic Statistics, and Graphical Analysis
  • Introduction to R and Python: Introduction to R and Python Environments
  • Linear Regression: Assumptions, Diagnostics, Specifications, and Forecasts
  • Panel Data Modelling: Basics of Panel Data Modelling – Fixed and Random Effects and GMM
  • Cross-sectional Data Modelling: Logit, Probit, Tobit, and other Variants and their Applications
  • Time-series Modelling: Basics of AR and MA, ARIMA Modelling and Forecasts

Introduction to Alternative Finance

  • Forwards, Futures & Options: Valuations, and Cost of Carry Model (seasonal & non-seasonal), Convenience Yield, Spread Arbitrage, Pricing of Forwards for Storable Consumption Commodities
  • Electricity Derivatives: Spot Market of Electricity: DAM, DAC, TAM, Daily-term Ahead Market, Price Discovery Process, Indian Electricity Derivatives Market
  • Weather Derivatives: Spot Market of Electricity: DAM, DAC, TAM, Daily-term Ahead Market, Price Discovery Process, Indian Electricity Derivatives Market
  • Carbon Derivatives: Cap-and-Trade, CER, ERU, and Emission Trading Standards, Switching Prices, Carbon Credits
  • Freight and Water: Functioning of Freight Exchanges, Freight Indexes, and Water Derivatives Valuations
  • Hedging and Speculation with Futures: Types of Hedges, Profit Margin Hedging, Inverse Hedging, Enhancements, Speculation, and Investment Process, Cross-hedge, Tailing the Hedge

Climate Change Finance and Investment

  • Political Economy of Global Environment: Global Firms in International Environmental Politics, Business Power and Business Conflict, Overconsumption v/s Overpopulation Debate, CASE Study on Global Climate Change
  • Global Climate Environment & Business Risk: Global Environmental Policy Norms, Energy Policy, and Climate Change, Trans-national Environmental Activism, Business as a Global Actor, International Negotiations, Corporate Climate Risk - Regulatory, Physical, and Business Risks
  • Role of Government and Financial Institutions in Adapting Climate Change: Introduction to the Governmental Tools and Institutions used to Support Climate Finance Objectives, Mapping International and Domestic Climate Finance and Investment, The role of Public Finance Institutions - Domestic Promotional Banks, Multi-lateral Development Banks, Export Credit Agencies
  • Impact of Climate Change on Finance: Physical Impacts on Unregulated Sectors, on Carbon-regulated Sectors and Financial Services, Institutional Investors, and their Activism
  • Climate Finance: Determinants of Climate Finance, Climate Policies: Mitigation and Adaptation, Introduction to Clean Energy Finance, Ethical Considerations with National and International Climate Finance
  • Financial Mechanism and Instruments: Economic Instruments for Climate Change (concessional finance, blended finance, bonds, guarantees, results-based payments), Climate Risk and Stock Pricing, Pollution Premium, Corporate Risk-taking Behaviour, Risk Management Strategies amid Climate Change Risk

Carbon Pricing, Trading, and Markets

  • Overview of Carbon Pricing: Fundamentals of Carbon Pricing, Market Failures, Externalities, Coase Theorem, Carbon Taxes, Carbon Markets, Institutional Topics in Cap-and-Trade International Carbon Markets and Future of Carbon Pricing
  • Global Carbon Markets: Introduction to Climate Meetings – Kyoto and Paris Agreements, CDM, JI and CERs and ERUs, Cap-and-Trade, Global Emission Trading Platforms, EU-ETS, and other Markets, their Comparative Analysis
  • Voluntary Carbon Market: Carbon Accounting- Footprints, Auditing of Carbon, Scopes 1-3 of Carbon Emissions, Carbon Offsetting Mechanism - Supply and Demand, International Offset Mechanisms, Voluntary Carbon Offset Standards – Verified Carbon Standard, Gold Standard, Plan Vivo Standard, American Carbon Registry, SBTi Commitment
  • Carbon Offset Market: Voluntary Offsetting Market, Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) and its Traded Instruments, Buying and Selling Offset Credits – Forward and Spot Sales. Global Offset Exchanges – Voluntary Carbon Emissions Offset Futures – Basis Markets
  • Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism: CBAM and its Operation Rules. Its Impact on Cross-border Trade and Developing and Developed Countries Relations, CBAM and Carbon Leakage and its Impact on Carbon Offset Market
  • Emission Trading in India: PAT Analysis, Escerts and RECs Specifications, Trading of Escerts and RECs on Energy Exchanges. Future Directions of Carbon Trading in India

Introduction to Sustainable Finance

  • ESG Materiality and Responsible Investing Approach: 3 pillars of ESG Model and Selection of Material ESG Issues, Screening, Thematic and Selecting Responsible Investment Approaches
  • ESG Ratings and Assessment of Corporates: Anatomy of ESG ratings or ESG Score, Characteristics of ESG Indicators and Ratings, Commercial players in ESG ratings, Sustainalytics, MSCI, RepRisk ESG Business Intelligence, Ceres, JUST Capital
  • Responsible Investment across Different Asset Classes: Equities, Fixed Income, Real Estate, Commodity Investments, Mutual Funds, Indices, ESG in Managing Sovereign Wealth and Government Sponsored Funds, Future of ESG Investing
  • Asset Allocation and Portfolio Analysis: Risk and Return Assessment for ESG Portfolios, Asset Allocation and Portfolio Analysis, Concept, and Application of Diversification and Hedging, Comparison of ESG Portfolios and Conventional Portfolios
  • Sustainability and Asset Pricing: Sustainable CAPM, ESG Integration in Value, Momentum, and Growth Factors
  • Sustainable Blue Economy: Taxonomy of Blue Economy Sectors and Activities, Blue Economy and Small Countries and Coastal Population, CASE on "Impact of climate change on Blue Economy of the Indian Ocean Region"

Sustainable Reporting and Disclosure Practices

  • Introduction to Sustainability: Meaning, Scope, TBL, CSR to ESG
  • Sustainability Reporting Framework: Drivers to Sustainability Reporting, GRI, UN Global Compact, Principles of Responsible Investing, Integrated Reporting Practices
  • Legal Framework, Conventions, and Treaties: Brundtland Commission, Kyoto Protocol, Bali Roadmap, UN Conference on Sustainable Development, UN Paris Agreement, COP26, COP27
  • Concept of Circular Economy: 10 R’s, Steps towards a Circular Economy, Principals for Circular Economy
  • Concept of Environmental, Social and Governance: ESG Disclosures and its importance, Greenwashing, ESG Reporting Frameworks, Comparison of ESG, SRI and Impact Investing
  • Case Analysis: Welspun India Limited: A Sustainability Journey

Machine Learning for Climate and Carbon Finance

  • Machine Learning and its Applications in Climate Finance: Introduction to Climate Change Opportunities for Machine Leaning in Climate Action and Climate Finance
  • Fundamentals of ML: Basics of Machine Learning, Difference between ML and Statistical Modelling, Assessing Model Accuracy, Basics of Python
  • Supervised ML Models: Models used for Regression and Classification problems, Linear Regression, Polynomial Regression, Regression Splines, and Smoothing Splines, Linear Probability Model and Logistic Regression, Tree-based Methods, Support Vector Machines, KNN Predicting Corporate Carbon Footprints for Climate Finance Risk Analyses
  • Deep Learning: Single-layer Neural Networks, Multilayer Neural Networks, Convolutional Neural Networks, Recurrent Neural Networks, Predicting Corporate Carbon Footprints for Climate Finance Risk Analyses
  • Unsupervised Learning: Principal Components Analysis, Clustering Methods, How green are SRI labeled funds?
  • Sentiment Analysis: Investor Climate Sentiment and Financial Markets, Green Bond Market and Sentiment
  • Explainable AI Techniques: Techniques to make ML Models Interpretable
  • Climate Finance and ML: Is ML a boon or bane for Climate Action?

Green Bonds – Pricing and Valuations

  • Fundamentals of Bonds: Basic Terminologies Of Bond Markets, Par Value, Discount, Premium, Maturity, Coupon Interest Rate, Operations of Conventional Bonds, Yield to Maturity, And Collateral, Interest Rate Risk, Credit Risk, And Credit Spread
  • Fundamentals of Green Bonds: Green Bond Basics: Current State Of Play, The Sustainable Debt Market, Green Bond Definitions, The Green Bonds Taxonomy & Classification Systems, Green Bond Policy Landscape
  • Green Bond Pricing: Basics of Yield Curve, Green Bonds Pricing in the Primary Market, Spread Compression, Greenium, On The Curve, New Issue Premium, Secondary Market Analysis – Vanilla Spread, Vanilla Average
  • Green Bond Market Development: Green Bond Market Development: Global and Regional; Sovereign Green Bond Market Evolution, Benefits and Impact, and Transition Finance, International Benchmark, and some Relevant Case Studies
  • Green Loans & Green Microfinance: Fundamentals and its Mechanism, Benefits and Valuations, Principles, Assessment of Green Microfinance
  • Sustainable Debt Market in India: Social & Sustainability and Sustainability-Linked Bonds, Sectoral Overview of Green Bonds, ESG Funds, Taxonomy, Reporting and Regulatory Ecosystem and Current Outlook

Financial Modelling to Clean Energy Products

  • Overview: An overview of Clean Energy Finance and its Investment Attributes, Significance of Statistical Modelling with Conventional Equities and Other Alternative Assets, International Clean Energy Indices and their Trading Attributes
  • Dynamics of Clean Energy Equities: Fundamentals of Clean Energy with Crude Oil and other Energy Products, Technology Stocks, Green Bonds and ESG Ratings, Calculation of Systematic and Non-systematic Risk of Clean Energy Equities
  • Price Discovery Process: Modelling Cointegration Process, Market Integration and Relational Analysis, Price Discovery in the Commodities Derivatives Market, Applications in Offset Products
  • Risk Management in Energy Products: Methods to Calculate Time-Varying Volatility, Univariate and Multivariate Setup, Calculation of Dynamic Portfolio Weights and Hedge Ratios, Volatility Spillover Analysis, Green Bonds vs Conventional Bonds
  • Modelling Multivariate Setup: Introduction to Multivariate Time-series Models and Estimation of Causal Inferences between Green Bonds and Energy Products and their Interactions with Economy-specific Fundamentals
  • Firm-level Analysis: Firm-Level Analysis, Data Curation and Modelling, Application of Panel Data Models, Time-Series and Cross-Sectional Validations, Case Studies

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