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Past Finalists and Winners

The prospectuses and presentations of Kellogg-Morgan Stanley Sustainable Investing Challenge finalists are not only a great reference for participating students, but are an evolving record of the evolution of the field of sustainable finance, and, in some cases, early iterations of what have now become successful ventures. 

Click through each year below to see the prospectuses and final presentations that were deemed the strongest in that year of the competition.

2011  •  2012  •  2013  •  2014  •  2015  •  2016  •  2017  • 2018  •  2019

2020  •  2021  •  2022  •  2023

University of Oxford, Saïd Business School; University of Oxford, Smith School of Enterprise; University of Oxford, Environment and Medical Research Council Brain Network Dynamics Unit

2021 Winner
BeeBank & Brokerage

Pooling loans and contract assurance to help beekeepers scale operations and expand practices that drive biodiversity conservation.

University of Edinburgh Business School; University of Edinburgh School of Engineering

2021 Runner-up
Fund for E-Bus Batteries

A leveraged fund financed by private equity and asset investors seeking to help accelerate the adoption of electric buses in The Netherlands, by creating a solution for second-life application of batteries.

Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs; Columbia University, School of Professional Studies

2021 Finalist
Kazakhstan Solar Desalination Fund

An infrastructure-focused private-equity fund investing in floating solar farms on the Caspian Sea to provide clean and affordable energy to desalination plants in Kazakhstan.

New York University, Stern School of Business; Queen's University, Smith School of Business; Sciences Po University; University of Toronto, Rotman School of Management

2021 Finalist
Gloria Insurance

An optimized, index-based insurance solution for climate-related disasters, managing for moral hazard risk while helping to expedite insurance-payout claims for farmers in Madagascar.

Queen's University, Smith School of Business

2021 Finalist
ESG Litigation Fund

Litigation-financing private-equity fund designed to help underwrite environmental, social and governance (ESG) litigation in the U.S.

Yale University, School of Management; Yale University, School of the Environment

2021 Finalist

Sustainable Infrastructure Debt Fund

A debt fund that would fill a gap in capital flows to sustainable infrastructure projects in developing countries and provide a first-loss hedge for institutional investors to enhance projects’ credit profiles.

University of Oxford, Saïd School of Business

2021 Finalist
Gigabyte Real Estate ENvironmental Trust (GREEN REIT)

A real estate investment trust targeting Singapore-based green data centers as a novel asset class designed to help decrease carbon footprints and improve impact transparency.

Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management

2021 Finalist

Incarceration Investment Fund

A mutual fund designed to provide access to working capital for incarcerated individuals upon their release from prison. Investors may include soon-to-be incarcerated individuals as well as impact-driven investors and donors.

Singapore Management University, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

2021 Finalist
Greenfill Trust

A real estate investment trust to invest in U.S.-based landfills and next-generation recycling facilities to help improve plastic waste collection and recycling.

Frankfurt School of Finance and Management

2021 Finalist
European Circular Fund

Introducing a plastic packaging-focused cap-and-trade system designed to support a loan fund for waste collection, waste treatment and recycling companies within the EU.

Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management

2021 Finalist
Green Default Swap

A green default swap to help mitigate the risk of “greenwashing” in the context of EU regulatory taxonomy, reporting and verification.

University of St. Gallen

2021 Finalist
COVID-19 Performance Social Bond

An outcomes-based social bond designed to incentivize EU government and policymaking to prioritize the preservation of employment and help address economic inequality exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business

2021 Finalist
Healthcare Energy Assurance & Resilience Trust (HEART)

A private-equity fund investing in stand-alone renewable-energy generation and storage infrastructure to help make healthcare facilities more sustainable and resilient.

Stanford University, Stanford School of Engineering

2021 Finalist
Scope 5 Carbon Savings Account

Tax-advantaged carbon savings accounts modeled on employee health savings accounts to help employees upgrade home technology that shrinks their carbon footprints and utility bills.

Chulalongkorn University, Sasin School of Management

2021 Finalist
Carbon Crypto Fund

Cryptocurrency-based carbon credit fund focused initially on eucalyptus farmers in Thailand to help foster the generation of carbon offset credits while addressing poverty.

University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business; University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School

2021 Finalist
Solar Cycle Fund

A private-equity fund designed to harness the extended life of decommissioned solar panels, helping to reduce waste through second-life equipment deployment in developing nations.

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