The Taxonomy Regulation establishes common and science-based definitions to determine whether an economic activity is environmentally sustainable. It aims to make sustainable finance more accessible to investors, while also protecting them from false or misleading claims about a financial product’s sustainability. In doing so it shifts a large part of the burden to prevent greenwashing onto the legislator. This chapter therefore critically analyses the Taxonomy’s ability to protect investors from greenwashing and identifies a number of pitfalls. The market for sustainable financial products is rapidly growing, yet the Taxonomy so far only covers environmental sustainability in selected sectors. Gathering and disclosing the necessary environmental data can be challenging and costly and may discourage companies and financial market participants to offer Taxonomy-aligned products, possibly turning it into a niche product. The Taxonomy’s binary approach makes it difficult for investors to assess the sustainability of complex financial products and limits incentives for non-aligned companies to improve their performance. This chapter therefore argues for an extension of the Taxonomy that distinguishes between positive, intermediary and harmful activities and provides definitions for social and governance aspects of sustainability

In cases of international or cross-cultural research we need to take extra care at every stage of the process, and this chapter looks at various aspects of this. Research involving unfamiliar environmental and cultural differences may complicate the understanding of the research problem, and researchers often fail to anticipate the impact of local cultures on the question asked. Consideration also needs to be given to the scope and limits of the problem. In some cultures, a broader scope is necessary to cover the necessary variables. Comparability of data is the main issue in international/cross-cultural research, and it is not possible to use data gathered in one market for another market. This is due not just to the availability and reliability of data but also to the manner in which data are collected and analysed.

In cases of international or cross-cultural research we need to take extra care at every stage of the process, and this chapter looks at various aspects of this. Research involving unfamiliar environmental and cultural differences may complicate the understanding of the research problem, and researchers often fail to anticipate the impact of local cultures on the question asked. Consideration also needs to be given to the scope and limits of the problem. In some cultures, a broader scope is necessary to cover the necessary variables. Comparability of data is the main issue in international/cross-cultural research, and it is not possible to use data gathered in one market for another market. This is due not just to the availability and reliability of data but also to the manner in which data are collected and analysed.