A global collaboration of institutional investors seeking to engage with Australian governments on climate change risks and opportunities will expand to 25 firms with approximately US$8 trillion (A$12.2 trillion) in AUM. Investors launched the Collaborative Sovereign Engagement on Climate Change in September last year, with a pilot focus on Australia, and coordination provided by the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). A further 18 investors will join the engagement in 2023-24, with the aim of collaboratively supporting governments to take “all possible steps” to mitigate climate change in line with the Paris Agreement. Investors joining the engagement include: Achmea, Ardea Investment Management, Brown Advisory, Candriam, Colchester Global Investors, Fidelity International, First Sentier Investors, IFM Investors, Insight Investment, Jupiter Asset Management, LGPS Central, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Munich Re, Neuberger Berman, Pendal Group, QIC, Rest and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management. They will join existing members of the engagement’s advisory committee: Aviva Investors, BNP Paribas Asset Management, Brandywine Global, HESTA, Nordea, Robeco and Schroders. The investors are seeking engagement with sovereigns to reduce their exposure to risks associated with a failure to rapidly transition to a net zero global economy including the value of sovereign debt investments, the continued competitiveness of national economies and investee companies, and systemic risks through exposure to the global economy. PRI CEO David Atkin said the exposure of sovereign bond holdings to climate change risks and opportunities was coming into sharper focus for investors, leading them to reach for engagement as one of their strongest tools. “Engagement between sovereigns and investors can lead to mutually beneficial outcomes that will help accelerate the necessary transition to net zero emissions,” he added.
📢🌍PRI is thrilled to announce the expansion of the sovereign engagement on climate change focusing on Australia partnering with 25 investors with~US 8 trillion AUM.
Read more about the engagement here: https://t.co/nqZWnNkUvR
— The PRI (@PRI_News) August 31, 2023
