The Charging Bull • New York, NY • December 2023

David A Criss


"Understanding a question is half an answer."

- Socrates

ASSA Annual Meeting • New Orleans, LA • January 2023

Hello and welcome!

I am an advanced Ph.D. Candidate specializing in Economics and Urban Sustainability at Wayne State University. My core areas of research encompass ESG & Sustainable Finance and Health Economics.  For more information, feel free to click around. And please come back for more updates. 

Research Insights

I am deeply committed to understanding the profound ways businesses and institutions influence the environment and society at large. 

Featured Research

My dissertation explores the intricate relationship between capital markets and firms' environmental and social footprints. Anchored by ESG performance analysis, this research offers valuable insights to investors, corporate leaders, and academics.

Henry Ford Health

In collaboration with Henry Ford Health, I also study the health trajectories of food-insecure patients involved in a hospital-centric food insecurity alleviation program. This research is relevant to healthcare administration and provides innovative investment perspectives in health economics.

Lean & Green Michigan

In partnership with Lean and Green MI, I explore the financial outcomes of sustainability initiatives. This collaboration has been pivotal in refining my approach to sustainable investments and evaluating green and energy-efficient measures in financial terms.

Affiliations

Job Market Paper

"The Financial Implications of ESG: Effects on Costs of Capital"

with Drs. Liang Hu and Hiu Lam Choy


Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance has become a pivotal aspect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), signifying firms’ commitment to sustainable and ethical business practices. This study investigates the relationship between ESG performance, as measured by Bloomberg ESG scores, and cost of capital using panel data from U.S.-domiciled and U.S.-listed firms spanning 2014 to 2022. My analysis demonstrates that stronger lagged ESG performance scores are significantly associated with a lower cost of equity capital in the subsequent year, aligning with prior research that has identified a negative relationship between ESG performance and the cost of equity. This finding reflects: (i) Investors require a lower expected return for firms with strong ESG practices, driven by improved perceptions of long-term stability, reduced risk, and enhanced corporate governance; and (ii) ESG effects take time to influence capital markets prices. These results highlight the financial materiality of ESG initiatives, demonstrating that sustainability efforts can lead to measurable advantages in the equity markets. By linking ESG performance to favorable cost of capital outcomes, this research underscores the strategic importance of integrating ESG considerations into corporate decision-making.

Academic Training

Michigan State University

James Madison College

"The JMC curriculum, with its multidisciplinary perspective and focus on applied social science, prepares students to face real-world challenges with maturity, creativity, and responsibility. Consequently, the College's name garners considerable respect. Across Michigan, throughout the Midwest, and increasingly, throughout the country and world, new graduates find many opportunities available to them based on previous contact by employers with Madison students and graduates" (MSU JMC).

Wayne State University

Graduate School

Department of Economics

"Wayne State University is among the nation's top public universities for research expenditures, with more than $220 million spent annually, has been awarded the Carnegie Foundation's top classifications in research and community engagement, and is a member of the University Research Corridor along with the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, generating 95 percent of research in the state and supporting economic growth throughout Michigan" (WSU Graduate School).

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