The Role of Sustainability in Central Bnaking, Climate Week Zurich 2026
Climate Week Zurich 2026 was an enormous success with conversations, events, collaborations taking place across 260+ events in the city. The momentum for sustainability continues as discussions become plans, plans turn to action, and action introduces change.
A thought-provoking and timely discussion at the University of Zurich during Climate Week Zurich 2026: the Competence Center of Sustainability (CCS) conference on “The Role of Sustainability in Central Banking” on Friday, 8 May 2026 brought together leading academics, policymakers, and practitioners to examine how central banks are navigating climate risk, sustainability, and evolving institutional mandates. Simultaneously, it launched the book “Central Banking and Sustainability” (CUP 2026), ed. by Kern Alexander and Seraina Grünewald.
Organized by the Competence Center of Sustainability at UZH together with ILE-HSG Institut für Law and Economics, and hosted by Kern Alexander and Seraina Grünewald, the conference showcased a truly interdisciplinary dialogue at the intersection of finance, law, economics, and sustainability.
A particular highlight was the keynote by Danae Kyriakopoulou (Bank of England), alongside contributions from distinguished speakers and chapter authors including Elsie Addo Awadzi (University of Oxford, formerly Bank of Ghana), Fabian Amtenbrink (University of Rotterdam), Will Bateman (Australian National University), Elia Cerrato García (CUNEF Universidad), Nik de Boer (University of Amsterdam), Paul Fisher (CISL, University of Cambridge, European University Institute), Sarah Jane Hlásková Murphy (ECB), and Pierre Monnin (Council of Economic Policies). A further bonus for attendees was the book table and the book raffle, where participants could win a signed copy of the book.
A collection of proceedings will be curated in the next couple weeks with a more in-depth summary of the discussions, but here are some key takeaways from the discussions so far that became clear:
• Sustainability is increasingly being viewed not as an “add-on,” but as a core consideration for financial stability and monetary policy.
• Climate risk, transition risk, and greenwashing are becoming central concerns for regulators and financial institutions alike.
• Central banks face growing pressure to balance traditional mandates with the realities of climate transition and long-term systemic resilience.
• Interdisciplinary collaboration between academia, policymakers, and industry is essential to shape credible and actionable frameworks for sustainable finance.
The conversations made clear that sustainability and central banking are no longer separate discussions - they are increasingly intertwined, and it is high time to move from theory into actionable practice.