Climate Action 2010-2011

Finance and Markets
Green growth: incorporating sustainability at the heart of company strategy is delivering impressive results.
Image courtesy of BMW
Emma Howard Boyd
Director of Jupiter Asset Management
Low-carbon world-beaters:
Energy-efficient solutions are growth drivers for blue-chips
Given the urgency required in meeting ambitious
carbon reduction targets, we should be enthused
and emboldened to see established, large-cap
companies making it their business to facilitate the
transition to a low-carbon economy, and reaping the
rewards from doing so, says Emma Howard Boyd,
director of Jupiter Asset Management.
A strong business won’t stand still as the world around
it changes. A glance at the most enduring and established
companies reveals a common culture of continuous
innovation and adaption in response to anticipated risks
and opportunities. In this respect, efforts to decarbonise
and yet grow our economy represent an exciting
long-term opportunity for those businesses that can
successfully market low-carbon solutions.
Indeed, even in a deeply challenging economic
environment, recent years have been characterised by
an increasing flow of corporate low-carbon growth
stories, not least from established businesses sensing
a burgeoning market now and in the future. The
presence of large-caps within this bracket is especially
notable, as seed investments into new product lines
have reached maturity and are delivering strong and
stable rewards. To borrow a phrase from UNEP’s Green
Economy report from earlier this year, this marks the
beginnings of “green growth”: returns on investment
“in economic sectors that build on and enhance the
earth’s natural capital or reduce ecological scarcities and
environmental risks.”
Green growth – to name just a few
A high-profile example of the value added in recognising
low-carbon opportunities can be seen at General Electric
(GE). Between 2005 and 2009, the company’s investment
in research and development behind its ‘Ecomagination’
growth initiative surpassed US$5 billion. Coupled with
the news that the company has committed an additional
investment of US$10 billion by 2015, this serves as a
show of confidence in low-carbon, sustainability-related
opportunities. Clear successes underpin this. According
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