There is an emerging consensus that long-term value creation is the key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the SDGs, by 2030. This is a relevant perspective for all players in the system, governments, corporates, financial institutions, and consumers. Corporates play a key role in long-term value creation. They provide products and services that can contribute to the SDGs. Companies production processes are also relevant for sustainable development. For example, using renewable energy, minimizing use of virtue materials or freshwater that's increasingly recognized. The front runners in the World Business Council for Sustainable Development have adopted the SDGs as leading framework for the future. The renewed corporate confidence codes in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands have laid down long-term value creation as guiding objective for corporates. So what's a new fishing for the financial system in this new setting? Using its allocation role, the financial sector can direct transition in the corporate sector by investing in and lending to its companies that contribute positively to the SDGs, and by divesting and ceasing to lend to companies that have a negative impact. In that way, the financial sector can accelerate the transition to long-term value creation. There is also a widely felt need to reorient finance from the short-term to the long term. So in conclusion, a new vision for the financial sector is to investing, lend to, and engage with corporates that aim for long-term value creation. A guiding principle for investment and lending moves from maximizing financial value to optimization of integrated value, combining the financial, social, and environmental dimensions. The social and environmental dimensions ultimately incorporate the contribution to the SDGs. The evidence presented throughout this MOOC indicates that there is a business case for full sustainability integration into investment and lending, which is a first step towards achieving the SDGs. There is early evidence that companies that perform well on material sustainability issues also perform well in the stock market. This is consistent with the idea that strong management of material sustainability issues brings a real competitive advantage, including in the transition to sustainable and inclusive economy. This new vision for the financial system contrasts with a piecemeal or project-based approach. The financial sector is then, for example, called upon to invest in new infrastructures for energy transition. Such a project-based approach will be too narrow as a perspective for the financial system. Moreover, when the orientation of the financial system remains financially focused, the F-dimension. Financial institutions may keep asking for public subsidies or tax incentives before investing in new sustainable projects, as they ignore the social and environmental potential. Rebooting of the financial system from managing on financial value to managing on integrated value offers a broader perspective. The financial system can then be fully exploited to achieving long-term value creation, and truly perform its social function of steering financial capital to the most productive ends. This new perspective requires integrated thinking, which integrates the financial, social, and environmental dimensions as people determine the success of a transition in interplay, of course, with the system, individuals matter. While there are some change agents who start to look for alternatives, most people prefer the status quo. So there is a need to reboot the current culture or software of the financial system and develop a new culture. To make the transformation lasting, intrinsic motivation of the people in the financial industry including its leaders is crucial. Responsible management education can contribute to that. Just providing incentives will not do. Thank you for listening.
