Investing in a Sustainable Future – Webinar

Thank you for joining us for a discussion hosted by the Trinity Business Alumni on ‘Investing in a Sustainable Future’.

Investors are increasingly incorporating ESG factors into their investment analysis, and this has resulted in a substantial increase in socially responsible investing. However, many fund managers have not significantly altered their investment strategies. 

In this webinar, hosted by the Trinity Business Alumni-TBA, we speak to two investment managers, one from Europe and one from the US, with a focus on the “E” and the “S” of ESG, to discuss what has motivated the shift in focus for some investors. Our speakers will also consider the reasons why other investors continue to maintain a focus on traditional measures of risk and returns, without a direct focus on ESG materiality.   

Click here to watch a recording of this webinar. Speakers’ slides can also be found here.

Webinar Speakers:

Dr Martha O’Hagan-Luff is an Assistant Professor of Finance and the Co-Director of the MSc in Law and Finance @Trinity Business School. She holds a BA in Economics and an MSc in Finance from Trinity College and a PhD in International Finance. Her research is in the area of Behavioural Finance, Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Finance. She has published articles in the British Journal of Management, International Review of Financial Analysis, Small Business Economics, International Journal of Finance and Economics and the International Business Review. Prior to completing her PhD she worked in Investment Banking in London and Dublin, for Bank of America, Credit Suisse First Boston and Bank of Ireland Global Markets. Her area of specialisation was derivatives and financial engineering. Dr O’Hagan has received multiple teaching awards – in 2019 she was shortlisted for the Provost’s Teaching Excellence Award and won the award in 2020.

Cynthia DiBartolo is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tigress Financial Partners, a woman-owned and operated Financial Services Firm sensitive to people with disabilities, which she founded after battling head and neck cancer in 2009. Tigress is a fully licensed investment bank, broker dealer and registered investment advisor dedicated to the principles of diversity and inclusion. In July 2021, Cynthia and Tigress Financial Partners made history when they become the first disabled and woman-owned Floor Broker and Member of the New York Stock Exchange in the Big Board’s 229-year history. Cynthia also holds extensive outside business affiliations, including as Chairperson of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition Steering Committee for Financial Services, Founder & Chairperson of the Diversity Broker-Dealer & Asset Management Coalition, and Chairperson of the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce, among others.

Kathy is Head of Responsible Investment at Irish Life Investment Management (ILIM), and Vice Chair of CDP Ireland. At ILIM, Kathy leads on Responsible Investment strategy development and implementation including screening, integration and active ownership activities. Prior to ILIM, Kathy worked at Aviva Investors as Senior ESG product strategist with responsibility for ESG integration across asset classes. She led on Aviva’s new product development in ESG and the development of an internal ESG proprietary score using AI resources. She developed an ESG and Climate strategy for Aviva Life and rolled out the ESG integration policy across investment desks. Kathy was also Executive Director at Global Green Investments, where she worked with Development Finance Institutions, NGOs, policy makers and Institutional Investors on sustainable fund structuring and climate risk methodologies.