Foundational Courses

Climate Bonds GSS+ Bonds Training

As the leading fixed-income debt instrument, green bonds have also paved the way for the appearance of other thematic-labelled bonds. New labels and formats contributing to long-term environmental and social projects have arisen to further expand the labelled bond market, which is a clear signal that issuers and investors are highly committed to a greener, fairer, and more sustainable world.

Cognizant of the rapid growth and relevance of the labelled bond market and bearing in mind the strong appetite for these innovative debt instruments, the Climate Bonds Initiative has structured a comprehensive course on green, social, sustainability, sustainability-linked and transition (GSS+ bonds) for a variety of professionals eager to acquire broad knowledge on these tools. Climate Bond Initiative’s GSS+ Bonds Training blends a set of elements and information which aim at providing an overview of thematic labelled bonds in a thorough and robust manner. 

  • Duration: Courses from 7.5 learning hours if delivered online via Zoom or Teams / 1 Full Day of Learning if delivered in-person, classroom style
  • Content: Theoretical material with the latest data and research, case studies, interactive Q&A, and exercises. Take away the material, a glossary, and a list of resources. 
  • Certification: Climate Bonds Completion Certificate
  • Translation: Available in multiple languages: English, Spanish and Portuguese; simultaneous interpretation services available.
  • Accreditation: Registered on the Climate Bonds Initiative Academy Database

Course Design and Content:

  • Structured theory, case studies, experience sharing, and practical exercises are combined to enhance the learning experience.
  • GSS+ Bonds Basics: current finance landscape, the universe of GSS+ bonds, their definitions, market evolution, types and benefits and GSS+ bonds' contribution to the global goals.
  • Setting the scene: market stakeholders and their roles, voluntary principles and existing standards, classification systems for assets and projects and the GSS+ bonds policy landscape.
  • Process for issuing a bond labelled green: pre-issuance (green bond framework and supporting mechanisms), issuance (book building, primary and secondary markets) and post-issuance (allocation of proceeds, reporting and audit)
  • GSS+ Bonds market development: status quo of the GSS+ bonds market, sovereign and sub-sovereign bonds (market evolution, benefits and impacts) and GSS+ bonds market trends.

Expected Outcomes:

The GSS+ Bonds Training objective is to provide an overall understanding of the role of thematic labelled bonds in shifting financial practices to more sustainable approaches while providing an overview of how these bonds impact the way the market perceives sustainability and what attracts investors and issuers to the GSS+ bonds market. Additionally, this training aims at discussing in detail the use-of-proceeds labelled bond issuance process and providing comprehensive information on the GSS+ bonds market’s size, key stakeholders, key investment themes, among other key elements.

Participants in the training program can expect to acquire solid knowledge and be able to respond to the following questions at the end of the sessions:

  • What are thematic labelled bonds their differences and similarities?
  • How has the labelled bond market evolved in the past years?
  • What are the common forms and benefits of thematic labelled bonds?
  • Who are the actors involved in the GSS+ issuance process, their roles, and responsibilities?
  • What is the market infrastructure supporting the issuance of GSS+ bonds (principles, standards, taxonomies, etc.)?
  • What are the key policy developments that can help scale up the market?
  • What are the requirements for use-of-proceeds labelled bond issuances (from inception to maturity)?
  • What are the contents and characteristics of a use-of-proceeds labelled bond framework?
  • What are the external review methodologies currently available in the market?
  • What is the process for Climate Bonds certification?
  • How did the GSS+ bond market start?
  • What has been the evolution of the GSS+ bond market?
  • What are sovereign and sub-sovereign GSS+ bonds?
  • What is the market’s forecast for the coming years?

 

 

Climate Bonds Roadmap to a Credible and Ambitious Transition

To face the challenges posed by climate change and avoid more disastrous events, humanity urgently needs to reverse rising greenhouse gas levels and economies need to adapt to the new changing environment. This will require enormous efforts, particularly from countries and entities with high emissions levels. They will have to reinvent or reimagine themselves by planning and implementing new pathways that incorporate GHG management, sustainability, and climate resilience at the core of their goals.

It is bearing in mind these circumstances that the transition concept has recently emerged. In broad terms, this concept refers to the change that countries and entities need to make from today’s high greenhouse gas emissions to levels commensurate with meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement. This is of course easy to say but challenging to implement given the tangle of co-benefits and trade-offs, and the difficulty in establishing measurable metrics that can determine a credible transition.

To contribute to the global efforts of the transition agenda, Climate Bonds has structured, in a thorough and robust manner, a capacity-building session which includes not only learning modules, but also case studies, interactive discussions, and exercises, to build skills in the market and prepare stakeholders working on transition topics. This training will provide participants with the opportunity to learn how large emitters, entities, activities, and assets can shift from today’s high GHG emissions to meet the global goals and how the market is shaping the transition concept in a way that it could only be used to identify actors that are truly making credible and ambitious transitions.

  • Duration: Courses from 9 learning hours if delivered online via Zoom or Teams / 1.5 Days of Learning if delivered in-person, classroom style
  • Content: Theoretical material with the latest data and research, case studies, interactive Q&A, and exercises. Take away the material, a glossary, and a list of resources. 
  • Certification: Climate Bonds Completion Certificate
  • Translation: Training materials and communication are in English. Other languages and/or translation services are also offered at an additional cost. 
  • Accreditation: Registered on the Climate Bonds Initiative Academy Database

Course Design and Content:

Cognisant of the urgency and importance of the ‘transitions’ agenda, Climate Bonds Initiatives ‘Roadmap to a Credible and Ambitious Transition’ aims to provide an overview of the knowledge produced by our different teams and our in-house views of the topic with the objective of influencing action. It also aims at providing a good overview of the transition agenda which represents the work resulting from efforts coming from multiple experts that can guide the market towards a credible and ambitious transition.

  • Introduction and context: Climate emergency and status quo of affair
  • Transition concept: introduction to concept, principles of ambitious transition and dimensions for different stakeholders
  • Transition pathways: definition, examples and players in the field
  • Transition plans: triple A plans and the hallmarks of a credible transition
  • Guidance supporting the transition space: taxonomies, sector criteria and the Climate Bonds Standard
  • Sustainable debt market: Climate investments and capital flows, Transition finance, Thematic bonds supporting the transition space, Climate Bonds Certification scheme and Examples of transition transactions
  • Exercise: transition transactions and transition plans
  • Key takeaways
  • Useful resources related to the transition space

Expected Outcomes:

Specifically, participants in the training programme can expect to acquire enough guiding elements to answer the following questions:

  1. Why is climate transition urgent?
  2. What is the market’s understanding of transition?
  3. What does transition mean for each market player?
  4. What are the 5 principles underpinning an ambitious and credible transition?
  5. What are transition pathways?
  6. What are transition plans?
  7. What are the five hallmarks of a credible transition?
  8. What are the key elements that determine compliance with the hallmarks of a credible transition?
  9. What is the role of taxonomies in the transition space and the existing sector criteria supporting high emitting industries?
  10. How can Climate Bonds Standard support the transition agenda?
  11. What is the status quo of climate and sustainable investments?
  12. What is transition finance?
  13. How can thematic bonds support a transition?
  14. What are use-of-proceeds and performance-linked instruments?
  15. What is CBI’s certification scheme and how is it supporting the transition agenda?

 

 


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Need further information? Please contact us at training@climatebonds.net. We will be happy to talk to you!