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This session looked at case studies of investors who have integrated sustainability practices into their investment decision making and portfolio construction, their outlook for the next five to 10 years, and what they think ESG 2.0 will look like in their portfolios.[vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Lucy%20Thomas%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Head%20of%20investment%20stewardship%2C%20TCorp%20(Australia)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Lucy%20Thomas%20leads%20NSW%20Treasury%20Corporation%E2%80%99s%20stewardship%20activities.%20In%20her%20role%20she%20has%20joint%20accountability%20with%20the%20investment%20leadership%20team%20for%20the%20design%20and%20implementation%20of%20a%20new%20total%20portfolio%20approach%20to%20investment%20and%20stewardship%20philosophy%20and%20process.%20TCorp%20is%20committed%20to%20be%20an%20effective%20steward%20of%20the%20%2490%20billion%20of%20assets%20entrusted%20to%20TCorp%20on%20behalf%20of%20the%20people%20of%20NSW.%5CnShe%20is%20responsible%20for%20establishing%20and%20managing%20best-practice%20stewardship%20at%20TCorp%20and%20uses%20a%20five%20pillar%20framework%20to%20embed%20stewardship%20across%20the%20organisation.%20These%20pillars%20include%20ESG%20integration%2C%20proxy%20voting%2C%20engagement%2C%20collaboration%20and%20disclosure.%20She%20ensures%20consistency%20of%20approach%20and%20transparency%20to%20stakeholders%20including%20government%2C%20clients%2C%20TCorp%20board%20and%20global%20industry%20peers.%20%5CnShe%20was%20previously%20global%20head%20of%20sustainable%20investment%20at%20Willis%20Towers%20Watson.%20Her%20career%20spans%20diverse%20global%20investment%20roles%20with%20over%2015%20years%E2%80%99%20industry%20experience.%20Her%20background%20includes%20equity%20research%20at%20Morgan%20Stanley%20in%20London%3B%20a%20boutique%20real%20estate%20manager%20in%20Europe%3B%20and%20a%20Sydney%20based%20market%20neutral%20hedge%20fund.%5CnShe%20is%20a%20CFA%20charterholder%20and%20holds%20a%20BA%20(Hons)%20in%20management%20science%20from%20Dublin%20University%20(Trinity%20College).%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2233580%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Flucy-thomas-b194b855%2F%3ForiginalSubdomain%3Dau%22%7D%2C%7B%22name%22%3A%22Andrew%20Siwo%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Director%20of%20sustainable%20investments%20and%20climate%20solutions%2C%20New%20York%20State%20Common%20Retirement%20Fund%20(United%20States)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Andrew%20Siwo%20is%20the%20director%20of%20sustainable%20investments%20and%20climate%20solutions%20(SICS)%20at%20the%20New%20York%20State%20Common%20Retirement%20Fund%20and%20reports%20to%20the%20chief%20investment%20officer.%20He%20is%20charged%20with%20providing%20leadership%20and%20oversight%20on%20sustainable%20investment%20efforts%20across%20the%20Fund%E2%80%99s%20%24220%20billion%20portfolio%20and%20is%20the%20portfolio%20manager%20for%20the%20fund%E2%80%99s%20%2420%20billion%20commitment%20to%20SICS.%20Previously%2C%20Siwo%20was%20an%20investment%20director%20and%20served%20as%20the%20head%20of%20mission-related%20investments%20(MRIs)%20at%20Colonial%20Consulting%2C%20an%20investment%20consultancy%20to%20over%20150%20leading%20foundations%20and%20endowments%20with%20an%20aggregate%20of%20%2440%20billion%20in%20assets.%5CnAt%20Colonial%20Consulting%2C%20Siwo%20led%20the%20creation%20of%20client%20portfolios%20targeting%20MRIs%2C%20developed%20the%20firm%E2%80%99s%20MRI%20(SRI%2C%20ESG%2C%20impact)%20framework%20as%20well%20led%20sourcing%2C%20investment%20research%2C%20and%20due%20diligence%20across%20asset%20classes%20for%20related%20investment%20strategies.%5CnPrior%20to%20joining%20Colonial%20Consulting%2C%20Siwo%20was%20a%20manager%20at%20the%20Global%20Impact%20Investing%20Networking%20(GIIN).%20In%20his%20capacity%20there%2C%20he%20was%20responsible%20for%20the%20operation%2C%20sourcing%2C%20and%20development%20of%20ImpactBase%2C%20the%20largest%20platform%20of%20impact%20investment%20funds%20globally%2C%20which%20he%20grew%20by%20%2410%20billion%20and%20validated%20over%20100%20impact%20funds.%20He%20also%20educated%20and%20fostered%20institutional%20investors%20seeking%20exposure%20to%20socially%2Fenvironmentally%20responsible%20investment%20portfolios.%5CnPrior%20to%20joining%20the%20GIIN%2C%20Siwo%20spent%20five%20years%20in%20the%20investment%20banking%20division%20at%20JP%20Morgan-most%20recently%20in%20the%20Global%20Special%20Opportunities%20Group%2C%20a%20%243%20billion%20proprietary%20portfolio%20of%20principal%20investments%20in%20private%20equity%2C%20debt%2C%20mezzanine%2C%20infrastructure%2C%20and%20real%20estate.%20He%20also%20held%20roles%20on%20the%20rates%20desk%20executing%20fixed-income%20financing%20transactions%20as%20well%20as%20the%20Securitized%20Products%20Group%20valuing%20collateralized%20mortgage%20obligations.%5CnBefore%20JP%20Morgan%2C%20Siwo%20was%20a%20member%20of%20the%20Corporate%20Finance%20and%20Real%20Estate%20Strategy%20Group%20at%20Victoria’s%20Secret%20leading%20project%20finance%20initiatives.%20He%20began%20his%20career%20at%20E*Trade%20Financial%2C%20managing%20a%20team%20of%20investment%20representatives%20serving%20active%20traders%20and%20high%20net-worth%20investors.%20His%20investment%20articles%20have%20been%20printed%20in%20va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title=”Speaker” el_class=””][vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Amanda%20White%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Director%2C%20institutional%20content%2C%20Conexus%20Financial%20(Australia)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22White%20is%20responsible%20for%20the%20content%20across%20all%20Conexus%20Financial%E2%80%99s%20institutional%20media%20and%20events.%20She%20is%20responsible%20for%20directing%20the%20bi-annual%20Fiduciary%20Investors%20Symposium%20which%20challenges%20global%20investors%20on%20investment%20best%20practice%20and%20aims%20to%20place%20the%20responsibilities%20of%20investors%20in%20wider%20societal%2C%20and%20political%20contexts%2C%20as%20well%20as%20promote%20the%20long-term%20stability%20of%20markets%20and%20sustainable%20retirement%20incomes.%20She%20is%20the%20editor%20of%20conexust1f.flywheelstaging.com%2C%20the%20online%20news%20and%20analysis%20site%20for%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20largest%20institutional%20investors.%20White%20has%20been%20an%20investment%20journalist%20for%20more%20than%2020%20years%20and%20has%20edited%20industry%20journals%20including%20Investment%20%26%20Technology%2C%20Investor%20Weekly%20and%20MasterFunds%20Quarterly.%20She%20was%20previously%20editorial%20director%20of%20InvestorInfo%20and%20has%20worked%20as%20a%20freelance%20journalist%20for%20the%20Australian%20Financial%20Review%2C%20CFO%2C%20Asset%20and%20Asia%20Asset%20Management.%20She%20has%20a%20Bachelor%20of%20Economics%20from%20Sydney%20University%20and%20a%20Master%20of%20Arts%20in%20Journalism%20from%20the%20University%20of%20Technology%2C%20Sydney.%20She%20was%20previously%20a%20columnist%20for%20the%20Canadian%20publication%2C%20Corporate%20Knights%2C%20which%20is%20distributed%20by%20the%20Globe%20and%20Mail%20and%20The%20Washington%20Post.%20White%20is%20currently%20a%20fellow%20in%20the%20Finance%20Leaders%20Fellowship%20at%20the%20Aspen%20Institute.%20The%20two-year%20program%20consists%20of%2022%20fellows%20and%20seeks%20to%20develop%20the%20next%20generation%20of%20responsible%2C%20community-spirited%20leaders%20in%20the%20global%20finance%20industry.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2233531%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Famanda-white-101a7515%2F%3ForiginalSubdomain%3Dau%22%7D%5D” title=”Moderator” el_class=””][vc_empty_space height=”10px”]
Key takeaways
Lucy
We think about allocating risk, not capital. We take a whole portfolio view.
We assess ESG risks and benefits. Can we mitigate risks or take advantage of benefits?
Before we invest, we think about whether we can add value by active engagement and stewardship over the long-term.
It is important for sustainability to be integral to every cog of the investment wheel.
We ask our asset manager managers to follow the CFA’s code of ethics and report on their compliance to it, which gives us an insight into the culture.
We should continue to ask ourselves what our portfolio impacts, not just what our portfolio returns.
Andrew
The fund focuses on 9 of the 17 SDGs.
For sustainable investing 2.0, asset managers will need to identify the source of alpha.
In future, there will be a close examination of claims made versus claims achieved.
There is currently problematic inconsistency in rating agency assessments in the ESG space.
Dewi
A few years back, we set a target to invest 10 per cent in climate actions.
We wish to invest at least US$8bn in climate initiatives by 2030.
We have an ESG tilt to our equities portfolio.
The lack of data and lack of comparability is an ongoing issue.
Investment in the S and G is expected to continue in the current global circumstances.
One of the most important, upcoming challenges at CalSTRS is how the fund should evaluate Chinese investments from a human capital and environmental standpoint, says Chris Ailman, chief investment officer at the giant pension fund.
Stewardship and engagement will become an integral part of investment in the future, and asset owners need to write stewardship and non-financial objectives into their mandates with managers, according to Saker Nusseibeh, chief executive international of Federated Hermes.
Climate Action 100+ illustrates asset owners’ ability to come together to solve the tragedy of the commons, said Anne Simpson, managing investment director, board governance and sustainability at US pension giant CalPERS. She said once investors realise that risk and return comes from managing financial, human and natural capital then ESG became a fundamental part of investing.
Shardul Agrawala, head, environment and economy integration division at the OECD laid out the challenges and opportunities for governments to build back better. He highlighted the industries and that may undergo transformation and the underlying market failures that need fixing.
There is moment driven by the COVID-19 crisis to invest in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, according to chief executive of Robeco, Gilbert van Hassel. But investing in companies of the future, and avoiding risks of the past, requires real expertise and changing mindsets about investment poses one of the biggest challenge for investors.
Nigel Topping, Champion of COP26, says institutional investors should put their fund managers on notice to provide more net zero products. He was speaking at the Top1000funds.com Sustainability conference in a session detailing how asset owners can move towards net zero.
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