From OUR EDITORIAL STAFF we have wanted to investigate a little what is being said, as it usually happens every year at this point, about the investment prospects for 2022, and what any analysis could link to the postgraduate education sector.
For this reason, we have considered of interest what NN Investment Partners says that you can see on the site https://www.nnip.com/en-INT/professional/about in its “Outlook: three investment megatrends for 2022 and beyond” ( Outlook: Three Investment Megatrends for 2022 and Beyond) that were unveiled on November 3th.
With regard to what the company is, its main activity is defined as “managing assets responsibly. Because it matters and it works. As a responsible investor, we aim to improve the profitability of our clients and the world we live in. We do it by looking beyond financial performance, because the people we work for and with whom we work represent more than the investments we manage ”.
So, in this report they go on to make a clear synthesis of which are the three dominant themes for investments during 2022. Although it may seem far from our educational field that we represent from the AEEN in postgraduate education in Spain, it is interesting to see, as it is said colloquially, where do the shots come from in terms of investment capital movements in the EU.
This consulting firm talks about certain megatrends, which in its opinion are the ones that are going to define the general contours of the market prospects for the next year, so understanding them is essential to make investment decisions in the coming months. Of course, what happens in the EU in terms of investment has consequences for all social and economic areas, among which, without a doubt, postgraduate education is a fundamental piece.
The three megatrends according to their vision are:
– The normalization of economies from the coronavirus crisis, including the macroeconomic trends induced by Covid-19.
– The continuous search for alternative sources of return.
– The accelerated transition towards a more sustainable economy.
It is clear that Europe is looking for sustainable investors (and investments) willing to reap the rewards of a European Union in the midst of a regulatory review. Hence, Adrie Heinsbroek, director of sustainability of this group, points out three basic issues within the European framework:
- a) The EU sustainable financing framework will create opportunities for investors.
- b) Portfolios must be future-proof taking into account sustainability metrics.
- c) The impact of regulations will be felt far beyond the borders of Europe.
Innovative European regulations on sustainable finance are clearly said to be providing investors with a wide range of powerful tools to help them direct their capital to the companies and projects they are working on to solve the most pressing European challenges.
The new European regulatory framework for sustainable finance will help drive the transition towards a more inclusive economy, that is, a climate neutral economy.
The main conclusion of the EU regulatory review is simple: to safeguard returns and prepare their portfolios for the future, investors must factor sustainability parameters into their investment equation. This is the direction the economy and the market are moving, and this is where the opportunities lie. Let’s say, it is the space in which to look for these investment opportunities.
And where does education come in?
Beyond climate, the increasing emphasis of regulators and investors on social issues will help drive solutions in areas such as healthcare and education, which are critical to building partnerships as, around the world, and in particular in in the EU, great efforts are being made by governments and companies to rebuild economies after Covid-19.
Sustainable Finance Action Plan
The EU has led the world in its response to the “existential threat” of climate change and environmental degradation, seeking not to achieve net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and decoupling economic growth from the use of natural resources.
Postgraduate education is vital for the growth of the EU
We know that almost 8,000 million inhabitants on our planet is an objective data, with its lights and shadows, regarding how much of the world population is in underdeveloped and developing countries, and how much of that population lives in the European Union. Without a doubt 450 million inhabitants is a frank minority, but it gives us the ability to address all these issues in which we must, as the world’s leading political-economic bloc, set the most important guidelines, including education in general, and very particularly the postgraduate one.
Hence, following our research on current business school programs and how they are positioned for this post-Covid-19 stage and recovery of the activity that we want to return to the 2019 indicators and still surpass them, it is imperative that in the formation and training of new leaders, there is a very strong philosophy about this new regulatory form that the EU is applying so that we are the region that best attends to sustainability problems and that, without a doubt, the actions of our governments and companies will have repercussions (they will copy us) in the rest of the world. And this is good for the health of the world economy and society.
These programs adopt (there are many that have changed in the last year) a multidisciplinary approach to global challenges from their own perspective that is undoubtedly different, and that can generate (in fact does) specific degrees in sustainability matters such as an ad-hoc postgraduate course, or incorporating traditional MBA’s, but giving it a specific weight that denotes that postgraduate educational institutions have a new European and world perspective.
When from European politics (high politics) the convergence of business schools to have a comprehensive vision of global challenges is facilitated and the skills and knowledge of candidates are developed and expanded to address them effectively, there will be a return ( as in investments) of the greater value of human capital that is renewing staff, assuming leadership positions and integrating a healthier, cleaner and more inclusive society, because there will be a clear shared vision in this convergence towards the treatment of the issues (many of them real problems yet to be solved), which require a joint vision, both at the level of academic definition and in that of practical implementation by governments and organizations.
As progress is made in this line of action, especially from business schools, the learning of each student will be permanently monitored, in order to add depth and richness to their experience, which in turn, will be integrated into a larger context (their job) so it becomes a clear productivity improvement.
Online learning
Due to the highly flexible nature of all programs currently running in Europe, it is a great way for those with professional or family commitments to earn an additional qualification with minimal disruption or to present students in a virtual learning environment. Online interaction is no longer the exception to become the learning norm, and the important thing is that it is fully interactive, allowing you to communicate with highly qualified teaching staff from the comfort of your home or workplace.
Learning through a combination of online methods, including video lectures, study guides, self-directed and guided reading, and a variety of interactive online reflection and discussion activities, turns postgraduate spaces into large networks of virtual communities who have the particularity of having understood the moment that is being crossed as a consequence of the pandemic, and that they will work hard to consolidate a clear position that postgraduate education and training has to be one of the assets in which governments and organizations should support and even more, favor.
Student inequalities
Inequality can affect student populations across a variety of demographics. While most institutions collect monitoring data on the protected characteristics of their students, there are often gaps in this information for certain groups. Lack of data limits an institution’s understanding of the equality challenges faced by certain students and the ability to take action. Another concern is the lack of robust national data to allow benchmarking to make comparisons.
This information has been prepared by OUR EDITORIAL STAFF