About the Director



Quant Analysis, Fund Design, and Risk Modeling for Green Growth

Peter Adriaens, PhD PE BCEEM

Professor of Environmental Engineering & Finance, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Professor of Entrepreneurship & Strategy, Stephen M. Ross School of Business; Professor, School for Sustainability and the Environment

Motivation

I started as an environmental engineer in 1992, focused on translating laboratory-based models and technologies into field demonstrations, practitioner workshops and engagements with a wide range of industries (e.g. GE, OxyChem, Dow Chemical, Holcim). My research and teaching interests shifted to business entrepreneurship in 2006, when new business and financing models were necessary to drive market uptake of new technologies in the CleanTech space. Engagement with the Global CleanTech Cluster Association (GCCA), the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA), and financial services industry partners resulted in the development of scalable financing models for green infrastructure. Since 2014, this work is being translated in multi-asset renewal funds (MARF) powered by financial technologies to transform legacy economies and industries, including in the Great Lakes Region (e.g. Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Blue Growth Fund).

Academic Experience

Research. My expertise bridges environmental technology and green finance, funded by $28M. in grants and industry support. Since 2005, my work has focused on an emerging area in sustainability: How can the capital markets and financial technology be harnessed to stimulate industrial renewal and green growth? Areas of study: (1) Development of financial technology (waterVaR) for risk pricing of financial assets in the capital markets exposed to water constraints; (2) Financial network analysis and data-driven risk analytics for the design of multi-asset renewal funds (MARF) in support of emerging sustainable industries; (3) New business models to scale or diffuse technologies and companies engaged in the energy-food-water nexus space, smart mobility, smart grid, and green chemistry.

Teaching and Service. I teach Business Model Design, Entrepreneurial Business Fundamentals (for Scientists and Engineers), CleanTech Venture Assessment, Environmental Finance, and Capital Markets Risk from Water. Service activities include NSF-Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems; Strategic consultancies to the Asia Development Bank, the United Nations Department of Environmental and Social Affairs (DESA), and the Islamic Development bank on cleantech project investments world-wide.

Business Background

Acting CTO, Equarius Risk Analytics LLC, a financial technology firm addressing equity, portfolio, and infrastructure valuation impacts from business water risk exposures in their supply chains.

Co-Founder and CEO, Corymbus Asset Management, a financial technology firm focused on end-to-end macro- and microeconomic services for industry ecosystem analysis, algorithmic assessment of investment grade, asset allocation strategies, and blended finance fund designs.

Co-Founder, Global CleanTech Cluster Association, a Swiss-based foundation catalyzing global value systems for green economic transitioning. Active in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.

Honors and Awards

  • Finnish Distinguished Professor, Research Institute for the Finnish Economy, Helsinki, Finland;
  • Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship, Sichuan University, Chengdu/Suzhou, China;
  • Past-President, Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP);
  • Member-by-eminence, American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Scientists (AAEES);
  • Member, Flemish Royal Academy of Applied Sciences (KVAB)

Education

Postdoctoral scholar: Stanford University (1989-1992); PhD, University of California (1986-1989); MS, University of Gent (1984-1986); BSE, University of Gent (1981-1984).

Relevant Publications

Moya, R. R. Hampshire, S. Shen, S. Zielinski, and P. Adriaens. 2018. Data Commodity Swaps and Pooled Derivatives: Potential Impacts of Data Supply Chains on Monetization Models in the Smart Mobility Industry. Submitted for review. Int. J. Production Economics.

Adriaens, P. and A. Tahvanainen. 2016. Financial Technology for Industrial Renewal. ETLA Press. 279 pp. (available at https://www.etla.fi/en/publications/financial-technology-for-industrial-renewal/)

Kotiranta, A., A. Tahvanainen, M. Ritola, and P. Adriaens. 2016. Leveraging Physical Assets for Value Creation Through Cleanweb Firms: The Finnish Cleantech Space in Transition. Working Paper. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2611231. Submitted to California Management Review.

Larson, W.L., P.L. Freedman, V. Passinsky, E. Grubb and P Adriaens. 2012. Mitigating Corporate Water Risk: Financial Market Tools and Supply Management Strategies. Water Alternatives 5(3): 582-602.