November 2021

In the race to a net-zero and inclusive future, Canadian pension funds have a critical role to play – and a new report shows how

In a fast-changing world where global investors are embarking on the largest reallocation of capital in history, pursuing sustainability and inclusivity offers social, environmental, and investment benefits. To seize this unprecedented opportunity, and maintain their tradition of excellence, Canadian pension funds must play a vital role in realizing a sustainable, inclusive future, says a landmark new release. This report emerges from a partnership between The Natural Step Canada, Smart Prosperity Institute, and Corporate Knights, and extensive collaboration with an...

Impact investing: A brief guide to responsible investing

Impact investing is gaining more attention among investors today, especially with the Millennials and Generation Z. The growing popularity of impact investing is not anecdotal, as a rising number of asset owners and managers have turned to impact investing in pursuit of meaningful financial and social gains. In a nutshell, impact investing focuses on generating positive returns for investors and society in general. What is Impact Investing? Impact investing is a strategy where you put your money to work not only to acquire...

UK. More than 130 MPs call for parliament pension fund to divest from fossil fuels

More than 130 MPs, including over half of the parliamentary Labour party, have signed a cross-party letter to their pension fund calling on it to divest from fossil fuel companies to “ensure that our pensions are not funding climate disaster”. The letter, to be delivered on Monday to trustees of the Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund (PCPF), applauds recent reductions in investments in fossil fuels, but adds: “We believe you must go a step further, divesting from the fossil fuel industry...

Norway’s largest pension fund divests from 14 arms firms

Norway's largest pension fund said on Thursday that it has divested from 14 nuclear and regular arms-producing companies. Oslo-based KLP said it made the decision after reviewing its ethical criteria on weapons. "This will primarily mean companies that produce certain types of weapons which, by their nature, violate fundamental humanitarian principles,'' the fund said in a statement. "The criterion applies mainly to nuclear weapons and cluster munitions, as well as anti-personnel mines," it said in a statement. Which companies is KLP divesting from? As...

Can ethical investing really help in the fight against climate change?

By Ralph Benson What links climate change, the Black Lives Matter movement and the Facebook whistleblowing controversy? They’re all impossible to ignore when it comes to investing your money ethically. As global leaders and climate activists gather in Glasgow this week for COP26, in the face of the threat of climate catastrophe, the term ‘ethical’ will be bandied about in relation to all topics, from government finances to corporate responsibility. We, as potential pension investors, can play our part in this by...

El capital privado y la ESG: del cumplimiento a la creación de valor

Por PWC Las múltiples crisis por las que hemos pasado durante los últimos 18 meses han lanzado un toque de atención al mundo. Si queremos prevenir nuevas pandemias, reducir los riesgos relacionados con el cambio climático, construir una sociedad más equitativa y seguir creciendo tenemos que crear economías más sostenibles. Y las empresas están respondiendo a esta alerta situando a las cuestiones medioambientales, sociales y de gobierno (ESG) como un componente importante de sus decisiones estratégicas. Las compañías reconocen a la...

Knowing the difference between ethical, responsible and impact investing

Climate change awareness and environmental concerns have never been more important, and over the past few years these issues have been spoken about in abundance when describing financial investments. Three phrases in particular have been commonly used to describe investment products and strategies, but there is still confusion as to their exact meaning. Mike Appleby, investment manager on the Liontrust Sustainable Investment team, outlined the difference between ethical investing, responsible practices and impact investing. “Ethical investing looks to avoid controversial industries such...

US. DOL ESG investing rule could be here to stay

Democrats and Republicans in Washington broadly view retirement plan fiduciaries considering ESG factors in investment decisions much differently, with the Trump and Biden administrations promulgating vastly dissimilar regulations on the issue. A new rule proposal from the Department of Labor, which marks the latest move in a long-lasting regulatory fight, would explicitly permit retirement plan fiduciaries to consider climate change and other environmental, social and governance factors when selecting investments and exercising shareholder rights. The proposal, which was unveiled Oct. 13...

October 2021

Denmark. Pension major ATP aims for $31 billion of green investments by 2030

Denmark's ATP, one of Europe's largest pension funds, aims to have 200 billion Danish crowns ($31 billion) worth of green investments by 2030 and half that in 2025, it said in a statement on Thursday. "Reaching 100 billion DKK in green investments in just three years is - even for an investor of ATP's size - an ambitious challenge," ATP's chief executive Bo Foged said in a statement. "We want to spend the money where the return is attractive and a...

Market-led Sustainability is a ‘Fix that Fails’… but It May Have Been the Necessary ‘Defence at First Depth’

By Duncan Austin Humankind is a complex system suddenly pitched into adaptive crisis. From this bigger perspective, our ‘first response’ to the crisis has overwhelmingly been a voluntary market-led response under various banners – SRI, CSR, ESG, ‘impact’ etc. While this voluntary market-led (VML) meta-strategy has been a beneficial, and possibly inevitable, first response, it is becoming clear it is insufficient as an adaptive solution and that its pursuit now forestalls deeper changes required. We need to graduate from a VML...