Environmental initiatives – Benefits Canada.com

Climate change a growing focus for institutional investors in 2021

mschmit — Wed, 13 Jan 2021 05:00:08 +0000

For institutional investors keen to maintain environmental, social and governance commitments made in recent years, there’s a steep climb ahead. The Paris Agreement — and its call to keep climate change to a 2°C warming scenario — is shrinking the investable universe for those still seeking to align with its confines, according to a report from MSCI […]

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Wellington Management joins net zero asset managers’ initiative

mschmit — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 05:15:16 +0000

Wellington Management Co. is joining the net zero asset managers’ initiative as a founding member. The company is committing to working with clients on their decarbonization goals and setting an interim target for the proportion of assets to be managed in line with the attainment of net-zero emissions by 2050. Wellington is headquartered in Boston and […]

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Canadian ESG-related investment assets surge to $3.2 trillion: report

mschmit — Fri, 27 Nov 2020 05:15:06 +0000

Investments that incorporate environmental, social and governance factors are growing rapidly in Canada, according to a new survey by the Responsible Investment Association. It found these investments grew from $2.1 trillion at the end of 2017 to $3.2 trillion as of Dec. 31, 2019, a 48 per cent increase in responsible investment assets under management. In […]

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Pension plans focusing on ethical, responsible investing

mschmit — Thu, 19 Nov 2020 05:00:36 +0000

Demand for defined benefit pension plan sponsors to focus on environmental, social and governance factors through their investments is growing. Both plan sponsors and members have been increasingly vocal about keeping ESG issues top of mind. For example, the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan has worked on balancing this increased appetite for ethical investing with an overall […]

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Top ESG marks for Manulife Investment Management

mschmit — Fri, 16 Oct 2020 11:25:10 +0000

Manulife Investment Management Holdings (Canada) Inc. has been named to the Principles for Responsible Investment’s PRI leaders’ group 2020 in recognition of its ‘cutting edge’ practices in climate reporting, one of 36 signatories honoured this year. In its assessment, the PRI awarded Manulife Investment Management an A+ in the areas of strategy and governance, equity […]

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Benefits of integrating ESG include long-term alpha, minimized risk: survey

mschmit — Fri, 16 Oct 2020 05:06:48 +0000

As Canadian institutional investors increasingly integrate environmental, social and governance factors into their portfolios, the majority (97.5 per cent) said they believe these portfolios are likely to perform as well or better than non-ESG integrated portfolios, according to a new survey by RBC Global Asset Management Inc. The majority (70 per cent) of survey respondents said […]

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Institutional investors increasingly interested in ESG factors: survey

mschmit — Fri, 09 Oct 2020 04:45:36 +0000

A third (33 per cent) of institutional investors that haven’t yet incorporated environmental, social and governance factors into their investment decisions said they’re considering it, according to a new survey by investment consulting firm Callan. The annual survey, which polled 102 U.S. institutional investors this summer, found the percentage is the highest rate of ESG interest in […]

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CFA Institute examining how financial sector can help mitigate climate change

mschmit — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 11:15:09 +0000

The Chartered Financial Analyst Institute is looking to more deeply examine the financial industry’s role in mitigating climate change. In a new report, the CFA Institute examined how investors can engage with the issue of climate change. It noted a recent survey of its members found 40 per cent of respondents incorporate climate change information […]

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Legal analysis suggests CPPIB not doing enough to transition to lower-carbon assets

mschmit — Fri, 18 Sep 2020 05:20:45 +0000

The Canada Climate Law Initiative is calling into question whether the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is sufficiently aligning its investments with the transition to a low-carbon economy. In a legal analysis, the organization said the pension fund’s current allocations to high-carbon assets reveal a “troubling incrementalism” within its efforts to mitigate Canadians’ exposure to […]

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UTAM looks under the hood at investment managers’ ESG approaches

mschmit — Fri, 18 Sep 2020 04:53:14 +0000

Environmental, social and governance issues are key for many Canadian pension plans, but taking meaningful action is easier said than done, especially at small and mid-sized organizations. With a team of about 30 people, the University of Toronto Asset Management Corp. managed more than $11 billion of the university’s endowment, pension plan and short-term working […]

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