Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL)

Publications

Our thought leadership provides practical, evidence‑based insights to help decision‑makers across business, finance and policy lead change, shape markets and scale solutions.

105 results

Private finance for nature-based flood resilience: How banks, investors and insurers can help scale nature-based approaches to flood resilience

29 September 2026 – A briefing by CISL examines how banks, investors and insurers can help scale nature-based approaches to flood resilience Download the report hereAboutFlood risk is growing in the UK, increasing the need for a broader mix of prevention, protection and resilience measures. Nature-based approaches can form part of this mix, helping…
An ETS that works for businesses and the climate

18 September 2026 - This position by CLG Europe examines the European Commission’s 2026 review proposal for the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). It supports the proposal’s stronger focus on investment in industrial decarbonisation while calling for safeguards to maintain a strong and predictable carbon-price signal. The position sets out recommen…
Green Shoots: Nature positive innovation as a route to increased food security

17 September 2026 – A briefing by the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) examines how emerging innovations can be nurtured and scaled through coordinated action across the public, private and financial sectors.Download the report AboutMany of the innovations needed to address today's economic, environmental and social challeng…
The Orchestra Plays: Coordinating action to scale nature positive business models in Europe

17 September 2026 - A new report by the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) explores how nature positive innovation can be scaled when public institutions, businesses, investors and innovators play complementary roles within a shared system.Download the report AboutNature-related risks are increasingly impacting the economy, t…
Making Markets Fit for the Future: The new agenda for leadership and innovation

9 September 2026 – Long-term prosperity, resilience and environmental sustainability depend on markets that can respond to the risks and opportunities ahead. Yet many markets still fail to recognise and reward long-term value. In this new report, CISL sets out an agenda for leadership and innovation focused on shaping markets, sectors and places t…
New Legal Frameworks for Purpose-driven Organisations

3 August 2026 – As governments and businesses seek new ways to align economic success with long-term societal and environmental value, an increasing number of jurisdictions have introduced legal frameworks enabling companies to pursue both profit and public benefit. This report presents a comprehensive comparative legal analysis of these emerging d…
Advancing community engagement in South Africa

1 July 2026 – This paper explores how meaningful community engagement can act as a catalyst for renewable energy infrastructure expansion in Africa.Advancing community engagement in Africa: Barrier or catalyst for renewable energy infrastructure expansion?Download the paper This paper from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Le…
The ClimateWise Insurability Readiness Matrix

23 June 2026 – ClimateWise launches an Insurability Readiness Matrix, a first-of-its-kind tool to help insurers, financiers, corporates and policymakers understand and act on emerging insurability challenges before they become crises. Download the report Download the guidance notes Download the template Download the methodology About In March…
Cambridge: Investing in Climate Innovation

22 June 2026 - Our new prospectus Cambridge: Investing in Climate Innovation sets out how Cambridge is helping to enable the systems change through science, solutions and scaling.Download the report AboutCambridge is a globally recognised centre for climate innovation - where world-leading science is translated into real-world solutions at scale. A…
New modelling: electrification key to UK economy & security

16 June 2026 – A new report by Corporate Leaders Group UK shows electrification is critical to UK prosperity, jobs and energy securityPowering Prosperity: How electrification can strengthen the UK’s economy, resilience and energy securityDownload the report AboutThe UK is entering a period of heightened geopolitical and economic uncertainty, marke…
Resilience-Adjusted Credit Risk: Operationalising climate adaptation in financial decision-making

26 May 2026 – A report by CISL’s Banking Environment Initiative (BEI) outlines an approach to embed physical risk, insurance, and resilience into financial decision-making. Download the Resilience-Adjusted Credit Risk report: About The report, developed by CISL’s Banking Environment Initiative (BEI), highlights how physical climate risk is accele…
Aligning business models with a nature positive economy: from theory to practice

14 April 2026 – The world faces a global nature crisis, which is impacting the real economy and its key actors including businesses, governments and financial institutions. The global economy must take account of nature, which underpins its resilience and long-term stability. This requires a transition to a nature positive economy and to new busine…
Enhancing international private climate finance to green development in Africa: Why private finance is not flowing to prima facie opportunities

9 April 2026 - This paper examines why international private climate finance is not flowing at scale to green development opportunities in Africa that appear commercially viable, and what will be required to change that. Download the reportThis report from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) explores how Afric…
From Innovation to Impact: Scaling Climate Solutions to Transform Markets

23 March 2026 - This report sets out how the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) supports innovation with the potential to reshape markets, and the impact of this work over the past five years.Download the reportAboutAcross sectors, markets are being reshaped by structural pressures linked to climate change, natu…
Insurability as a resilience signal

18 March 2026 - ClimateWise has published a new briefing outlining how insurability is one of the earliest signals of whether assets, sectors, and entire economies can survive the accelerating impacts of physical climate risk. Download the full briefingInsurability represents a threshold where insurance is available and affordable. When this signal…

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Publications

Our thought leadership provides practical, evidence‑based insights to help decision‑makers across business, finance and policy lead change, shape markets and scale solutions.