Wall Street Wants Green Skills. Duke Says It Has The Answer

Duke Fuqua will partner with the Nicholas School of the Environment on a new Master in Business, Climate & Sustainability

Duke University today (August 25) announced the launch of a new joint degree, the Master in Business, Climate, and Sustainability, a 10-month program created by the Fuqua School of Business and the Nicholas School of the Environment to address a growing demand for climate-savvy business leaders.

The program, which will begin in July 2026, is one of the first of its kind in the U.S., designed to integrate business fundamentals with climate science and applied analytics. Graduates will be prepared for roles ranging from ESG reporting and compliance to sustainability strategy and climate innovation.

Russ Morgan, senior associate dean of operations at Fuqua, tells Poets&Quants that the idea for the program emerged after years of feedback from employers, alumni, and students.“We’ve been hearing a clear signal from both employers and students — organizations are setting bold climate targets, but they’re struggling to find talent that can bridge the language of business with the science of climate and sustainability,” Morgan says.

BUILT FROM THE GROUND UP

Duke Fuqua’s Russ Morgan: “With Nicholas faculty specializing in environmental entrepreneurship and Fuqua’s strength in business entrepreneurship, students are exposed to both the technical and managerial aspects of climate-tech ventures”

“Our alumni, too, have told us that they or others in their organizations often need to ‘learn on the fly’ once they’re in roles related to ESG, risk assessment, or climate strategy,” Morgan continues. “That gap in the market was the original spark. The program is also very much aligned with Duke University’s call to mobilize around climate, so it fits into a larger institutional mission. In terms of timeline, this has been several years in the making, with deep commitments from faculty and staff from both schools in designing the degree and shaping the curriculum and structure.”

Unlike many sustainability-focused MBAs or dual MEM/MBAs that layer climate content onto existing frameworks, Duke’s MBCS has been built from the ground up as an integrated program, Morgan says.

“In surveying market offerings, we found that most sustainability MBAs or MEM/MBAs are built by layering sustainability content onto existing programs,” he says. “Our joint degree is different in that we designed an integrated curriculum from the ground up — one that equally emphasizes core business fluency and deep climate understanding. It’s also much more accessible in terms of length and timing: a 10-month, pre-experience degree rather than a multi-year dual program. Compared to the wider market, many offerings are still either policy-heavy, business-heavy, or online-only. Ours is intentionally in-person, rooted in business, and climate-focused in every course. That focus on holistic integration in a one-year degree is what really sets it apart.”

Story Continues

The program will deliver coursework in finance, analytics, operations, leadership, climate science, energy systems, environmental policy, carbon accounting, life-cycle analysis, and optimization modeling. Students will work in small cohorts designed to foster collaboration and will participate in a two-term practicum with corporate partners.

“This is a true joint degree,” Morgan says. “The curriculum development is being jointly led by representatives from Fuqua and the Nicholas School to ensure a logical progression of learning. The end result is co-developed courses where we lean into the expertise of each school — Fuqua-led courses like finance and strategy alongside Nicholas-led courses in climate science and policy. Importantly, our two-term practicum is jointly advised, which means students are constantly working with faculty and practitioners across both domains.”

CLIMATE PRESSURES DRIVE DEMAND

The MBCS arrives as employers face rising pressure to deliver on climate goals. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 found that 47% of companies surveyed expect decarbonization efforts to drive major organizational change, while 41% anticipate adaptation to climate change will spur transformation as well. At the same time, progress has lagged. A 2023 analysis by Boston Consulting Group revealed that only 11% of 2,000 companies surveyed had achieved emissions reductions in line with their ambitions, underscoring what BCG described as the difficulty of acquiring the expertise required to plan and implement sustainability transformations.

The career paths envisioned for Duke MBCS graduates reflect these gaps.

“MBCS graduates will be ready for analyst-level and early career roles at the intersection of business and climate,” Morgan says. “Think about functions like ESG reporting, sustainability strategy, compliance, carbon risk assessment, supply chain sustainability, or climate-focused marketing. Employers span consulting firms, financial institutions, consumer goods companies, energy and tech firms — really, any sector where climate commitments are now front and center and where organizations realize they need people who can translate climate science into actionable business models and operational strategies.”

Students will have access to career support from both Fuqua and Nicholas, ranging from mentoring and workshops to career fairs and networking with Duke’s alumni base. The program also seeks to fuel innovation in the climate-tech space.

“One of the most exciting aspects is how the program brings business and climate faculty together around innovation,” Morgan says. “We offer a dedicated Climate Innovation course where students explore how organizations respond to climate pressures through new technologies, business models, and markets. With Nicholas faculty specializing in environmental entrepreneurship and Fuqua’s strength in business entrepreneurship, students are exposed to both the technical and managerial aspects of climate-tech ventures. Whether that’s carbon markets, clean energy startups, or sustainable consumer products, the MBCS program creates a launchpad for students who want to think and act entrepreneurially, be it as an entrepreneur or as intrapreneurs driving change from inside established firms.”

Learn more about Duke’s MBCS program here: https://admissions.fuqua.duke.edu/portal/business-meets-climate.

DON’T MISS WHY THIS FASHION-TECH FOUNDER CHOSE THE DUKE FUQUA MBA TO PIVOT TO PRODUCT MANAGEMENT

The post Wall Street Wants Green Skills. Duke Says It Has The Answer appeared first on Poets&Quants.

View Comments