A decision by the Canadian Securities Administrators to step back from the development of a mandatory climate-related disclosure mandate could impact decision-making at one of the largest pension funds in Canada. Jennifer Coulson, senior managing director and global head of environmental, social and governance at the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., says the regulator’s decision […]
Canada’s largest bank said Tuesday that it has scrapped one of its flagship climate commitments and is holding back on publicizing other climate progress in part because of new rules around greenwashing. In its latest sustainability report, the Royal Bank of Canada said that it has dropped its target of facilitation $500 billion in sustainable […]
With climate change affecting the planet and artificial intelligence disrupting the concept of work, a profound generational shift is underway in how young people are thinking about their futures. “When previous generations worried about retirement, they mainly focused on financial risk, market turndown, inflation and health-care costs,” said Kelly Peters (pictured left), behavioural economics leader […]
While nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of U.K. employees say it’s important their employer offers a pension plan that’s invested according to environmental, social and governance factors, half (47 per cent) say they don’t know whether their pension is invested in this way, according to a new survey by Scottish Widows. The survey, which polled […]
An advocacy group is calling on Canada’s public pension managers to use their financial heft to more publicly work to reduce climate change as political efforts become less reliable. In a new report, Shift Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health says Canada’s big pension funds need to recognize the power and influence they wield and to […]
Although news of BlackRock Inc.’s departure from the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero may call into question the future of the climate action initiative, the road to net zero is still a priority for many financial institutions, says Sebastien Betermier, associate professor of finance at McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management. The alliance, which […]
Canada’s public pension funds should rethink the billions of dollars they’ve invested in natural gas infrastructure amid the global push to reduce emissions, says a new report from a climate advocacy group. The report by Shift Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health says nine of Canada’s largest public pensions have invested in 22 gas-related […]
The urgency surrounding the climate change crisis is pushing institutional investors to focus on stricter measurements in the fight against confusing data that delays meaningful action. But voluntary measurements won’t be enough, as investors have already raised red flags against unreliable climate impact measurements getting in the way of their emissions reduction goals. The start […]
Institutional investors are facing significant barriers to including Scope 3 emissions as part of their disclosure strategy for environmental assets, according to a new report by the United Nations’ Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance. It found asset owners need to accommodate Scope 3 emission disclosures as part of their overall strategy to create a meaningful climate-centric […]
Brad Lander is advocating for public pension funds to enforce their responsible investment mandates even if that pits them against their partners. As New York City comptroller and chief financial officer, he’s the investment advisor and custodian for the city’s five public pension funds. In the role, he oversees the investment guidelines and allocations strategy […]