What are the Options for Sustainable Crisis Response Measures

What are the Options for Sustainable Crisis Response Measures?

SOAS lead: Ulrich Volz

Partner institutions: Third Generation Environmentalism (E3G); Bennett Institute for Public Policy, Cambridge University; South East Asian Central Banks Research and Training Centre (SEACEN)

Funder: International Network for Sustainable Financial Policy Insights, Research, and Exchange (INSPIRE)

Duration: 2020

Project Description 

The project will investigate response measures which could be deployed rapidly by central banks and other financial institutions in the context of a new financial crisis in a way that contributes to sustainability. 

The last financial crisis revealed structural problems in the global economy and led to major interventions by financial authorities. With interest rates near zero, central banks cannot reuse the tools deployed following the 2008 crisis. New stimulus measures will be required which reflect the current economic context, including the urgent need to green the financial system and the global economy. There is little consensus as to what these measures should be. The literature in this area is plentiful and there is debate between advocates of different stimulus tools, although only few contributions have considered sustainability impacts. This research project will review existing proposals and present a menu of green post-crisis management tools for central bankers, financial regulators and governments, with an evaluation of their sustainability-related risks and benefits. The project will consider their suitability for policy responses in Europe, Asia and North America.