Richard Sandor explores why the environment as an asset class will grow dramatically with the global trend toward sustainable development and how environmental asset classes allow businesses to pursue new opportunities while achieving their energy and environmental goals. He argues that the commoditization of environmental assets has the potential to be the principal driver of wealth creation in the near future and discusses how financial analysts can better evaluate companies on the basis of their environmental performance, exposure to environmental risks, and response to environmental opportunities and how portfolio managers can incorporate these new asset classes into their portfolios.

Please see the related Research Foundation of CFA Institute publication, Environmental Markets: A New Asset Class.