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.
Faculty of Agriculture, Gulu University
2023 Winner
Village Savings and Agriculture Insurance
Focusing on the impact of climate change on Ugandan farming, the VSAI team has proposed an insurance instrument that can underwrite crops and draw on the strength and partnership of local Village Savings & Loan agencies to keep smallholder farmers afloat.
Dehli School of Economics, University of Dehli
2023 Runner-up
Sustainable Stubble Fund
Sustainable Stubble Fund will reduce air pollution and land degradation associated with stubble burning by financing community-level Compressed Biogas plants and incentivizing supply-chain stability through community ownership and surplus trading agreements.
Judge Business School, University of Cambridge
2023 Finalist
Afrovax REIT
Afrovax REIT will raise sustainability-linked capital to invest in cold storage facilities in Sub-Saharan Africa that will dedicate space to vaccine storage to close the “last-mile” vaccination gap.
University College London
2023 Finalist
Auaca Fund: Deforestation Prevention and Sustainable Farming through Debt-for-Nature Swaps
Focused on the Brazilian Amazon and the global impact of deforestation and biodiversity loss, the Auaca team’s concepts proposes redirecting Brazilian coupon payments on their sovereign debt to fund conservation and the promotion of sustainable farming practices.
Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley
2023 Finalist
Blockchain-Enabled Variable Rate Water Credit Offset Bonds
This team aims to address water scarcity in the US’ Colorado River Basin and other water crisis areas through water offset credits, leveraging a BlueCert bond and underpinned by a blockchain contracting solution.
IESE Business School, University of Navarra
2023 Finalist
FuelForward Fund
FuelForward is a private equity fund which aims to address sustainable air fuel supply issues through the acquisition of increasingly unprofitable European oil refineries and retrofitting them for SAF production.
TIAS School for Business and Society
2023 Finalist
Green Future Reclamation Fund "GFRF"
The GFRF students have recognized a market gap in the financing of mining site land reclamation processes in Indonesia and proposes a creative combination of bonds and carbon credits to facilitate mining companies’ mandated remediation and reclamation activities.
Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
2023 Finalist
HIV Fighter Fund
HIV Fighter Fund is a special purpose vehicle that incentivizes joint ventures between global pharmaceutical companies and PEPFAR-contracted manufacturers in Sub-Saharan Africa to induce the development of resilient and efficient local supply chains.
Schulich School of Business, York University
2023 Finalist
Kelp Klique Sustainability-Linked Fund
Kelp Klique will purchase capital-intensive harvesting equipment and lease it to kelp farmers to enable them to sustainably scale and contribute to ocean de-acidification and biodiversity preservation.
University of Connecticut, Yale School of Management, Yale University
2023 Finalist
Saarthi
Saarthi partners with community organizations and employers to provide social services, job training and loans to victims of domestic violence in India in exchange for a share of future income.
Columbia Business School, Columbia University
2023 Finalist
Soilsurance
Soilsurance is an alternative to US federal crop insurance that accounts for the risk-
mitigation benefits of improved soil health. Farmers earn a discount on their
premiums based on soil-building practices, while improved farm resilience reduces payouts.
Questrom School of Business, Boston University
2023 Finalist
Sustainable Runway Fund
Sustainable Runway Fund is a special purpose vehicle that makes investments in Ioncell manufacturing capacity in Vietnam to improve the sustainability of the fast fashion supply chain.