Society & Organizations Institute
Climate and Earth
Climate and Earth
HEC Paris is committed to a sustainability strategy that is driven by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the imperative obligation for humankind to join forces to support climate action and protect both the environment and biodiversity.
The business world recognizes today that the planet is under major stress due to two factors: the impact of economic activity on climate and the environment; and companies are not taking enough responsibility towards ecological and energy transitions.
The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the risks derived from the destruction of natural ecosystems and the fragility of globalized economies. It has raised awareness on the possible disastrous consequences of a much larger-scale climate crisis.
While more and more companies have embraced their environmental responsibilities and the objective of a decarbonized economy, they still miss a shared vision for solving the challenges and trade-offs NEEDED FOR business and industry transformations. Students want to become sustainable changemakers but they need the knowledge, networks and mentoring to make a difference as solution-builders. Research and higher education institutions have the mission to shape new visions and models for a carbon-zero and environmentally sustainable future, and provide policymakers, business leaders and students with a compass to navigate the challenges and uncertainties.
It is the role of the S&O Institute at HEC Paris to inspire and develop research and education with an impact on Climate & Earth- related topics.
Our 3 pillars: Research, Education and Action for Climate Change
NEWS
“This is an historical moment.” Since he took up his post, François Collin, Director for Climate and Environmental Sustainability at HEC Paris has been emphasizing how important it is for schools to bring...
Hilary Matson, HEC MBA alumna 2020 is the founder of Yūgen Earthside that aims at shaping the future of sustainable tourism. Thanks to her new online platform, she helps us to travel better to protect and...
François Collin, Director of Climate and Environment Strategy at HEC Paris, testifies to the growing awareness of the ecological urgency, climate and biodiversity. He reacts to the call of the students of...
The second 2020 HEC Paris Earth Week brought together around 2,000 students, staff members, academics and outside visitors in virtual exchanges focusing on the environmental challenges ahead. The 12-day...
For the second time in a year, HEC Paris hosts Earth Week, a student-driven event designed both to promote social and environmental initiatives; and to debate over programs for sustainable development and...
HEC Paris has extended its commitment to the environment by expanding recycling waste operations initiated on campus in May. The 200m² Greenzone it has created is unique in France, designed to sort out...
HEC Paris and the Bouygues industrial group jointly launched the “Smart City and the Common Good” Chair. It will be headed by Professor Bertrand Quélin until 2023. In his October 12 online Masterclass...
In February 2020, the HEC Paris campus welcomed a week-long event on the topics of sustainable innovation and responsible business, organized by the student association Esp’R. The 1,500 students living on...
French economist Alain Grandjean joined HEC students and academics for a 90-minute exchange co-organized by Pour un Réveil Ecologique. The campus event with the cofounder of Carbone 4 was part of an S&O...
November 20 saw “Le Salon HEC” student association organize a conference with the journalist and film director Guillaume Pitron. The students had discovered the writer last year when they awarded him the...
HEC and Société Générale have renewed a partnership for the Energy & Finance Chair stretching back to 2005. The October 15 on-campus ceremony was followed by an evening conference focusing on the “key to...
Since 2016, Sushil Reddy, an Indian student from MSc Sustainability & Social Innovation (SASI), has been powering his custom-made bicycle in his homeland, the U.S. and France. His aim? To convince...
On March 11th, HEC Paris hosted its 5th annual edition of Energy Day. 150 HEC Paris students, alumni and keynote speakers from leading companies such as ENGIE, EDF, Deloitte, Google and SNCF were there to...
The pathway to reduce emissions and to limit global warming to 2°C will require substantial investment in clean energy technology. During the event: “The 2°C Challenge, Climate is our Business” – co...
On November 7, HEC Students for Sustainability welcomed guest speaker Darius Seiller for its first Climate Nights event. This series aims to foster an institution-wide commitment to environmental issues...
Energy and Finance Chair
On December 2019, The Energy and Finance Chair sponsored by Société Générale and held by Jean-Michel Gauthier, Affiliate Professor in Finance and expert in the energy sector joined the S&O Center. The energy world is going through an unprecedented change. In 25 years, global energy will be completely transformed: decarbonized, decentralized, digitized. The Chair is key to training leaders from all sectors in energy-transition issues and aligned with the S&O objectives related to climate and ecological transition.
Since its foundation in 2005, the Energy and Finance Chair created by Société Générale and HEC Paris has developed a number of training programs on energy economics and finance, including the flagship Certificate on Energy & Finance, a 6-week intensive module dedicated to energy markets and economics and delivered by SG professionals and executives or the HEC Energy & Finance chairperson, and attracts over 120 students every year.
Interview of Jean-Michel Gauthier, Holder of the Chair: from the oil industry to the Energy Transition
Read the Knowledge@HEC interview
"The leaders of the World Economic Forum in Davos identified climate risk as the greatest and most far-reaching threat to the global economy for the third year in a row. That applies to all companies and all countries." Jean-Michel Gauthier, Holder of the Chair
It is the duty of managers across the board to learn about the challenges of the energy.
Events
HEC Paris Students Grapple with Climate Change
On November 7, HEC Students for Sustainability welcomed guest speaker Darius Seiller for its first Climate Nights event. This series aims to foster an institution-wide commitment to environmental issues. A June 2018 alumnus, Darius Seiller is the co-founder and CEO of...