Acknowledging that the multi-faceted causes and consequences of climate change call for different methods, Quebec-based pension fund Bâtirente is publishing a new climate commitment.
“Effectively supporting the transition to an economy that is aligned with the objectives of the Paris [Agreement] requires a multi-dimensional approach,” said Daniel Simard, the pension fund’s chief executive officer, in a press release. “It is essential to simultaneously reduce greenhouse gas emissions and facilitate the financing of solutions and resilience, while convincing companies to make the commitment to increase their energy efficiency, to migrate to renewable energies and even to transform their business models.”
By 2025, Bâtirente will gradually reduce its exposure to climate risk by 50 per cent through the reduction of its investment in GHG-emitting companies. It will also invest in the economy’s transition by doubling its capital allocation in impact investments, which currently sit at 13 per cent of its assets under management.
Further, Bâtirente will direct its shareholder commitment to improve companies’ “climate protection performance.” And the organization will collaborate with partners committed to mobilizing society in the transition to a low-carbon economy as well as report regularly on its progress towards meeting these goals.
“It is important for Bâtirente to fulfil its fiduciary responsibility by taking the necessary steps to allocate the capital entrusted to us in the best possible way,” said Pierre Patry, treasurer of the Confédération des syndicats nationaux and chairman of the board of directors at Bâtirente, in the release. “Our commitment aims at mitigating both the cause of global warming by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the consequences of this climate change by building resilience.”