Climate change challenges non-executive board members. They must navigate external
climate factors, evolving stakeholder expectations, and changing regulations while
strengthening and overseeing long-term strategies.

The ‘Effective Climate Governance Programme’ is designed for and with experienced
corporate supervisory board members of the top 250 companies in the Netherlands that
want to stimulate and guide their organization towards a sustainable and climate
resilient future. To effectively fulfill your role as board member, you need knowledge, insights, tools, and a vision.

The programme consists of three modules, designed in such a way that academic
insights, peer learning and knowledge exchange strengthen your role and impact in the
sustainability transition and climate governance. Professors with highly respected knowledge of climate governance, accounting, sustainability reporting, governance, international management and organizational behavior of the University of Groningen will share with you their insights and knowledge.

For whom:

  • Members of the Board of Directors (exclusively)

  • Top 250 companies

  • Committed to contributing to effective climate governance

We address together with you:

  • The impact of the regulatory landscape on your organization and your supervisory role

  • The responsibility and liability as a NED from a regulatory and individual perspective

  • Overseeing the design of a sustainable strategy and navigating the external factors and dynamics to prevent short term focus prevailing

  • Engaging with stakeholders and understanding the dynamics of shareholder engagement

  • The role and tools of NEDs to assess the financial consequences and manage the risks of climate change for your organization

Programme objectives:

  • Knowledge about legal frameworks and their impact on business operations

  • Knowledge about climate change and future perspectives in this area and possible consequences for companies

  • Knowledge of stakeholder engagement and stakeholder expectations and their impact on (views on) long-term value creation

  • Insight into the business opportunities that sustainable business entails

  • Insight and vision of one’s own (formal) role as supervisory director

  • Inspiration and tools to act as a supervisory director and to get people moving

During an intake interview with you, we discuss the challenges of your
organization and the topics you want to raise. This information is used to tailor-make
the modules in such a way that we ensure the relevance, dynamics and applicability of
the sessions for each participant. The maximum group size is 14, facilitating a steep
learning experience.

Why this programme?

  • We meet in real life and work with small groups consisting exclusively of experienced non- executive board members

  • The programme has specific focus on sustainability and climate change both from a compliance and transformation perspective

  • The participants and organizers are all connected to Chapter Zero Netherlands which offers the opportunity to strengthen your network and continue learning

  • We use creative and adaptive working methods for you to learn and develop your own vision and have the tools to successfully make an impact

  • We work with renowned academics of the University of Groningen and thought leaders with proven expertise and rich experience on working with non-executive directors

“In my search for good training in the field of climate change that – as a supervisory director – not only teaches me the theory, but also how to put it into practice, I ended up at the Chapter Zero learning-path in collaboration with the University of Groningen Business School.

The unique thing about this course is that it focuses exclusively on commissioners and the set-up of the programme, the teachers and the mutual interaction with the commissioners facilitate the development of relevant tools to put theory into practice. I can wholeheartedly recommend this course to any commissioner who is involved in climate change in his/ her role.”

Non-executive director and member Chapter Zero

Programme Details

The programme consists of three sessions, each including an afternoon programme, a dinner and an evening programme. The programme is designed in such a way that academic insights, peer learning and knowledge exchange strengthen your role and impact in the sustainability transition.

Module 1 (30 October 2025)

Afternoon: Climate governance & energy transition: Issues related to climate goals and energy transition and the impact of global and national developments on business and sustainability policies will be discussed (prof.dr. Machiel Mulder).

Evening: Impact of CSRD, Compliance and existing (legal) frameworks: the regulatory international frameworks (CSRD/ESRS, TCFD, ISSB and the like), reporting on them (CSRD), the role of auditors, and the link to the bodies in charge of governance by prof. dr. Nancy Kamp-Roelands and prof. dr. Dick de Waard.

Module 2 (22 November 2025)

Afternoon: Climate Risk Management, Organizational Impact & Governance: the translation of strategy and compliance requirements to the internal organization, including the translation of the strategy into objectives, internal control, data quality, risk management supervision and information provision will be discussed by prof. dr. Lineke Sneller.

Evening: Stakeholder Engagement; the nature, goals and actors of activism include financial, social, shareholder and stakeholder engagement. How these impact sustainability, strategy and climate risk management will be discussed by prof. dr. Alan Muller.

Module 3 (22 January 2026)

Afternoon: Sustainability goals and personal leadership: knowledge building on sustainability will be discussed by prof. dr. Kim Poldner.

Evening: Governance, review and revision of governance:  what is put on the agenda (how do sustainability goals remain on the agenda when priorities need to be set), and dealing with resistance, differences of opinion in the board will be discussed by prof. dr. Floor Rink.

Work forms

The working methods are interactive and aimed at stimulating exchange with scientists, experts by experience and peers. Knowledge sharing, application, inspiration, reflection and vision formation are central to this. We will invite and challenge the participants to share and discuss their experiences. An intake interview will be held to inventory specific demands concerning the content of the programme. During the programme there will be made use of:

  • Living cases

  • Lectures/webinars

  • Panel discussion

  • Diner parlant

Lecturers

  • Prof dr. Nancy Kamp-Roelands , professor of non-financial information, integrated reporting and assurance at the University of Groningen. She brings a combination of experience with large multinational clients, (inter)national standard setting, executive teaching and research.

  • Prof. dr. Floor Rink, professor and research director Organizational Behavior at the University of Groningen. She is a specialist on boardroom dynamics and experienced lecturer executive education for board members.

  • Prof. dr. Dick de Waard, professor of auditing and assurance and has a track record of more than 30 years in researching and lecturing on sustainability, non-financial information and corporate social responsibility. He holds several positions in supervisory boards.

  • Prof. dr. Lineke Sneller RC, professor of practice of Digitalization & AI in Accounting, Control, Governance, and Auditing at the University of Groningen. In 1989 she became a PhD candidate in econometrics, in 2004 chartered controller, and in 2010 she obtained her PhD with a dissertation titled “Does ERP add company value?”. She teaches and publishes on IT Governance, Artificial Intelligence and Digitalization. In addition to her work at the RUG, Lineke is a member of the Supervisory Board of EY, APG, Infomedics and Van Wijnen. Furthermore, she is a member of the Advisory Board of the Instititute of Internal Auditors. In recent years Lineke has held various CIO and board positions, at Vodafone, Tele2 and InterfaceFLOR, and was a member of the Supervisory Board at Achmea, CCV, Ortec and ProRail.

  • Prof. dr. Kim Poldner, endowed professor at the University of Groningen and professor of Circular Business at The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS). She obtained her PhD from the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, where her research focused on sustainable entrepreneurship in the textiles industry. She has extensive research expertise in circular business, sustainability, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial ecosystems, and transition processes in businesses.

  • Prof. dr. Alan Muller, professor of International Management at the University of Groningen. From 2011 to 2015 he was Associate Professor and Director of the MBA Program at the University of Amsterdam. From 2008 through 2010 he taught International Business at the University of Washington’s Michael G. Foster School of Business. Alan holds degrees from RSM Erasmus University (PhD in Management), University of Amsterdam (Masters in International Relations) and University of Washington (Bachelor in History), all cum laude. Alan’s current research centers on the intrinsic- and extrinsic drivers of corporate social behaviors, particularly in a cross-border setting. From 2017 through 2022 he was the EIBA national representative from the Netherlands.

  • Prof. dr. Machiel Mulder, professor of Regulation of Energy Markets in the Faculty of Economics and Business at the University of Groningen. He studies the functioning of energy markets, energy policy and governance. He worked as head of the Energy department at the CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis, deputy chief economist of the Netherlands Competition Authority (NMa) and specialist in Regulation Economics at the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM).

Contact-page

For more information about the programme, please contact our customer team: info@chapterzero-netherlands.nl

Are you interested in applying? You are welcome for an intake interview
with our programme manager.

Jildou Jongman M: (+31) 06 41 38 85 33
E: j.i.jongman@rug.nl

Practical Information:

After attending one or more sessions, you will receive a certificate stating the number of PE- points you have achieved. A total of 15 PE points can be rewarded (5 PE points per module). You can then register this yourselves with the professional association to which you are affiliated. UGBS, as part of the University of Groningen, is accredited for awarding PE points.

The programme will be held at “The Green house” in Utrecht (Croeselaan 16, 3521 CA Utrecht). This completely circular building will therefore be the perfect location for sustainable and inspirational new knowledge & insights!