07.05.2026UZH Department of Finance at Climate Week Zurich 2026

Prof. Markus Leippold, Prof. Zacharias Sautner and Dr. Ario Saeid Vaghefi from our department presented at Climate Week Zurich on 7 May 2026

The UZH Department of Finance is proud to contribute to the Climate Week Zurich 2026, a leading multi-stakeholder platform dedicated to driving sustainable transformation across business, policy and society.

With more than 150 curated events throughout the city and a strong international reach, Climate Week Zurich connects key actors to accelerate climate innovation, resilience and risk mitigation strategies - both locally and globally. The initiative supports forward-looking approaches that demonstrate how economic success and sustainability can go hand in hand.

“Closing the Trust Gap in Science: from Data to Public Information and AI"

In collaboration with Earth Info Hub, the UZH Department of Finance and partners (SRF, EBP, MeteoBlue, Swiss Data Science Center, and the UZH SUREAL AI Lab) hosted an interactive roundtable.

Topic: “Closing the Trust Gap in Science: from Data to Public Information and AI”
Date: 7 May 2026, 13:00 - 14:30
Location: University of Zurich, Seminarraum RAI-J-031, Rämistrasse 74/76, 8001 Zurich, Switzerland
Register here

We are proud that Prof. Markus Leippold and Dr. Ario Saeid Vaghefi (Deputy Director of SUREAL AI Lab at the University of Zurich and co-founder Earth Info Hub) took part in a roundtable discussion focusing on how AI and human intelligence can be leveraged to improve access to Earth science.

“Sustainable Finance and Climate Finance – From Roots to Innovation”

Together with our network partner Swiss Sustainable Finance (SSF) our UZH Department of Finance and other participants (Asset Management Association Switzerland, Building Bridges, and Swiss Banking) hosted the following event:

Topic: “Sustainable Finance and Climate Finance – From Roots to Innovation”
Date: 7 May 2026, 16:00 - 19:00
Location: Careum, Pestalozzistrasse 3, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
Followed by a network apéro
Register here

Prof. Zacharias Sautner and Prof. Markus Leippold represented our department and contributed their expertise to the discussion.

Session 1: Foundations of Sustainable Finance & Climate Finance
Core pillars of sustainable finance: impact investing, engagement and climate risk
🎤 Zacharias Sautner, Ruben Feldman, CFA, Remo Oswald, Matthias Narr

Session 2: Innovation & Opportunities
From AI to cutting‑edge tools shaping the future of sustainable finance, this session puts innovation in the spotlight
🎤 Markus Leippold, Sandy Wolf, Romain Leroy-Castillo, Kyra Gibhardt

At this event expert speakers explored key questions at the intersection of finance, climate and nature, including:

The possibilities and limitations of finance in addressing climate change
Innovative financial products and services that support climate mitigation, adaptation and nature protection
The enabling role of technology in advancing sustainable finance solutions

The discussions highlighted what is already working in practice and identified what is needed next to accelerate meaningful impact across the financial sector. We thank the organizers for this event and look forward to participating in further engaging exchanges at Climate Week Zurich 2027!