Switzerland

Research Methods and Ethics – syllabus
(ANTH3500 / 3 credits)

The Research Methods and Ethics (RME) seminar gives an overview of major international players, international organizations / NGOs, transnational companies, and think tanks in the field of ethical banking and sustainable finance in the Geneva Lake region and Switzerland. It introduces students to the conceptual and practical tools for gathering primary data by doing interactive field research and interviews with local experts. The seminar enhances students’ skills in analyzing primary data and writing an Independent Study Project (ISP) or internship project proposal. The overall aim is to introduce students to experiential learning based on qualitative research methodology and learning in the natural setting. Students will gather data while interacting with local communities, businesses, public agencies or think tanks. Students doing internships will be exposed to the workflow of the local institution, start-up, or scientific organization.

Alternative Finance, Cryptocurrencies and AI – syllabus
(IBUS3503 / 3 credits)

This course focuses on the intersection of what may be considered financial services and intermediaries outside of mainstream finance. These stakeholders and actors may be as diverse as citizen’s initiatives within the solidarity economy, NGOs or SMEs active in the field of microfinance and complementary / local currencies. They can also be stakeholders in the internet-driven information society and decentralized finance such as cryptocurrency start-ups. In this context, AI and machine learning are drivers of massive social and economic change but also are drivers producing new trends with seemingly unstoppable decision-making power over the destinies of citizens, businesses, and states.

The course addresses the new cultural values, lifestyles, and modes of cooperation, equity, and innovation. Through their interaction, alternative finance stakeholders create a complex web to manage their activities with the purpose of challenging mainstream institutions by promoting issues ranging from the solidarity economy to decentralized finance, while using AI, machine learning, and virtual reality as tools of social engineering. The course addresses the limits of neoliberal global governance, which seems increasingly less capable to deal with complex 21^st century challenges.

Ethical Banking and Sustainable Finance – syllabus
(IBUS3600 / 4 credits)

The course introduces students to the historical dimension of the concept of ethics and finance, main focal points, terminology, and examples of financial institutions functioning in a socially responsible way. Students also learn about financial intermediation in Islamic banking and finance and compliance with sharia law.

The course introduces the concept of sustainable finance often described as “ethical” because of its aim to produce a positive social impact locally, regionally, and globally. The course explores the principles and strategies of Social & Responsible Investment (SRI), Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG), Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and Impact Investing and their contributions to a more sustainable future. Ethical banking and sustainable finance are designed to produce a positive impact on society and articulate responsibility for future generations. Increasingly featured in financial evaluation and businesses, this course looks at the workings of divestment, stranded assets, and the changing regulatory environment in Switzerland and Europe.

Choose between the following two courses:

Independent Study Project in Finance
Independent Study Project in Finance – syllabus
(ISPR3000 / 6 credits)

For the Independent Study Project in Finance (ISPF), students will do six weeks of fieldwork and design a project that carries an innovative proposition to address banking or finance issues from a social responsibility perspective. Projects may include proposals for a sustainable business, regulatory mechanisms for financial control and ethical account reporting, or promotion of complementary currencies. Regular reflection and assessment meetings are held with the academic director and academic advisor to review the progress of the ISPF.

Sample ISPF topic areas:

• Awareness level of sustainable finance issues among bank workers and consumers
• Profit-generating potential of ethical bank products versus classical bank products
• Role and efficiency of multi-stakeholder initiatives in the field of ethical investment
• Gaps in the existing sustainable finance regulatory system
• Alternative ways of financing new initiatives and their risks (e.g., crowdfunding, complementary and cryptocurrencies)

Browse this program’s Independent Study Projects / undergraduate research.

OR

Internship and Seminar in Finance
Internship and Seminar in Finance – syllabus
(ITRN3000 / 6 credits)

This seminar consists of a six-week internship with a sustainable development company, impact investment institution, start-up enterprise, intergovernmental organization, or Swiss or international NGO. Students do an internship and submit a seminar paper in which they process their learning experience and design a socially responsible solution to a problem observed during their internship. The aim of an internship is to enable the student to gain valuable professional experience within the Swiss or international financial environment. The institution and internship activities must be approved by the program’s academic director. Regular reflection and assessment meetings are held with the academic director and academic advisor to review the progress of the internship.

Internship and Seminar in Finance:

Internship Placements in past semesters (partner institutions may change from term to term).

• Aegis Experiment / CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) (scientific communication, international collaboration, marketing & finance), (spring semester only)
• Alimuradova Organisation (entrepreneurship, civil society, SDGs & SMEs)
• Brightside (artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, finance)
• Consulto (impact investment, innovation technology, public health & development)
• eFrontiers (artificial intelligence, financial literacy, IT)
• Fongit (innovation technology, impact investment, life sciences)
• Global Health Booster (impact investment, information technology, public health & development)
• Globethics (ethical leadership & decision-making, applied ethics in higher education, global network & international cooperation)
• Renaissance (fintech innovation, public-private partnership, sustainability & international cooperation)
• High Lantern Group (leadership & decision-making, global networking & strategic planning, public health & development)
• Impact Hub (SDGs & SMEs, social entrepreneurship, international cooperation)
• International Bridges to Justice (human rights & legal assistance, public private partnership, global justice & international cooperation)
• KYLYS (biotechnology, innovation, public-private partnership) 
• Trust Village (artificial intelligence, digital trust innovation, cybersecurity)