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Part I News articles Green investments a legal responsibility, say UN and top asset managers 14 July 2009 –‘Green’ investments are no longer just a luxury, but are now a legal responsibility, according to a new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and a powerful group of asset managers controlling some $2 trillion in assets. The 120-page publication released today argues that if investment consultants and others do not incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into their services, they face “a very real risk that they will be sued for negligence.” It also stressed the central role that the world’s largest institutional investors – including pensions funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds and mutual funds – have in easing the transition to a low-carbon and resource-efficient green economy. “ESG issues are not peripheral but should be part of mainstream investment decisions-making processes across the industry,” said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner. Further, he noted that creative market mechanisms and other incentives can help to ensure that as investors return to markets after the current financial turmoil ends, they will put their funds into a greener economy and not the “brown economy of yesterday.” The new report, entitled “Fiduciary Responsibility: Legal and Practical Aspects of Integrating Environmental, Social and Governance Issues into Institutional Investment,” was produced by Asset Management Working Group of the UNEP Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), a partnership between the agency and more nearly 200 financial institutions around the world. It was launched on the eve of the annual Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) event in Sydney, Australia, which will draw many of the largest institutional investors. Almost 600 institutions, representing over $18 trillion in assets, have signed up to the PRI, a joint effort between the UNEP FI and the UN Global Compact, a voluntary initiative to promote corporate citizenship which currently involves over 5,000 companies across 130 countries. 6
Non-green asset managers could be sued: U.N. report Tue Jul 14, 2009 11:08am EDT LONDON (Reuters) - Investment advisors and asset managers could be sued for negligence if they do not consider the environment and other social issues when making investment decisions, a United Nations report said on Tuesday. Money managers have a legal responsibility to raise environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues when tendering investment and advising clients, a law expert and one of the report's authors said. "(There is a) very real risk that (the advisor) will be sued for negligence on the grounds that they failed to discharge their professional duty of care to the client by failing to raise and take into account ESG considerations," said Paul Watchman. The report was produced by the Asset Management Working Group of the U.N. Environment Programme's Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), a partnership between the United Nations and more than 180 financial institutions with over $2 trillion under management. "Responsible investment, active ownership and the promotion of sustainable business practices should be a routine part of all investment arrangements, not an optional add on," said Steve Waygood, head of sustainability research and engagement at Aviva Investors, who also worked on the report. The report said that in the wake of the economic downturn, investment professionals now had a central role in using global economic stimulus money, estimated by HSBC to be around $2.8 trillion, to fund the transition to a low-carbon and resource efficient 'green' economy. "As investors return to the markets, the question remains whether the funds will go to the brown economy of yesterday -- or to a new green economy," said Achim Steiner, head of UNEP. But only around $430 billion, or 15 percent of these funds have so far been earmarked for funding the green infrastructure, according to research published by HSBC Global Research in February. One author said the worst financial and economic crisis in generations paled in comparison to what he called a looming "natural resources crisis" that would require investment professionals to rethink where they put clients' money. Last year, environmental group WWF said investors faced increased risk from companies that invested in unconventional fossil fuels without considering pending climate regulations or greenhouse gas emission permit costs in a carbon-constrained economy. (Reporting by Michael Szabo; Editing by Michael Kahn and Jon Boyle) © Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. Users may download and print extracts of content from this website for their own personal and noncommercial use only. Republication or redistribution of Thomson Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters and its logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of the Thomson Reuters group of companies around the world. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. 7
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