Pictet Water Fund

Has policies that consider (environmental and social) sustainability issues. Strategies vary but are likely to consider environmental issues like climate change, carbon emissions, biodiversity loss, resource management, environmental impacts; and social issues like equal opportunities, human rights, labour standards, diversity and adherence to internationally recognised codes. See individual entry information.

Has a significant focus on sustainability issues

Aim to encourage higher sustainability standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity

Use the UN Global Compact to inform or help direct where they can or cannot invest. Will typically not invest in companies with significant breaches (low standards) - strategies vary. (The UNGC covers a wide range of issues - search 'UNGC'). See https://unglobalcompact.org/

Aim to invest (and manage assets) in ways that help to address all or some of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). See https://sdgs.un.org/goals).

Publicly report performance against named sustainability objectives

Has policies which relate to environmental issues. These will typically set out their stance on issues such as pollution, climate change, resource management, biodiversity loss, carbon emissions, plastics and/or additional environmental impacts. Strategies vary.

Has documented policies explaining the approach to environmental damage and pollution. Strategies vary.

Has a policy or theme that relates to managing natural resources more efficiently. Strategies vary. See individual entry information.

Aims to invest in companies with strong or market leading environmental policies and practices. Strategies vary. See individual entry information for more detail.

Has a written policy or theme focused on waste management - typically to support or encouraging higher levels of recycling and better efficiency / reducing waste. Strategies vary.

Has policies designed to address involvement in irresponsibly managed palm oil or other forms of deforestation (typically exclusion led). Strategies vary.

Avoids assets that are involved in illegal deforestation. This may relate to palm oil, cattle farming or other areas. Strategies vary.

A significant focus on the investments that aim to take better care of the marine environment – both for wildlife and the people whose livelihoods directly depend on it.

Aims to avoid investing in companies that produce genetically modified seeds or crops. (This does not typically include avoiding companies such as supermarkets).

Avoids assets / companies directly involved in genetic engineering

Has a policy which sets out their expectations for how investee assets should manage their use of water - likely to focus on high users.

Has policies (documented strategies that explain their position) on climate change related issues such as greenhouse gas/carbon emissions, net zero, transitioning to lower carbon. Strategies vary.

Avoid investment in major coal, oil and/or gas (extraction) companies. Strategies vary.

Avoid companies involved in fracking and tar sands - which are widely regarded as controversial methods of oil and gas extraction. Strategies vary.

Avoid companies that are involved in extracting oil from the Arctic regions.

Avoid investing in companies / assets with coal, oil and gas reserves. See individual entry information for further details.

Has a policy which describes the avoidance or limited investment in the nuclear industry. Strategies vary.

Excludes companies and other assets with direct involvement in fossil fuel exploration (eg coal, oil and gas companies)

Will only invest in companies that report greenhouse gas emissions in line with this international reporting framework. See https://www.fsb-tcfd.org/ https ://www.ifrs.org/sustainability/tcfd/

Has policies which set out their approach to social issues (e.g. human rights, labour standards, equal opportunities, child labour and/or adherence to internationally recognised codes such as the UN Global Compact). Strategies with social policies typically avoid companies with low standards and/or work to encourage higher standards. See fund information for detail.

Aims to invest in assets with high social values - this may include strong human rights, labour standards and equal opportunities or safety related practices.

Has policies or themes that set out their approach to health and wellbeing issues, typically aims to invest in companies with high standards - or encourage high standards.

All mining companies excluded

Has policies that set out their position on ethical or 'personal values' based issues. Strategies vary.

Companies are excluded if they are involved in any aspect of the production chain for tobacco products, including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.

Companies are excluded if they make more than 5% of their revenue from the manufacture, sale or distribution of tobacco products including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.

Excludes companies which make controversial weapons such as landmines, cluster munitions and chemical weapons.

Avoids companies that manufacture weapons intended specifically for military use. Strategies vary - may or may not include non-strategic military products.

Avoids companies with military contracts. This may include medical supplies, food, safety equipment, housing, technology etc

Has a written civilian firearms exclusion policy - meaning that they will not invest in companies that make (or perhaps also sell) handguns made for non-military users.

Avoids companies that produce alcohol. Strategies vary; some may allow a small proportion of revenue to come from this area.

Avoids companies with significant involvement in the gambling industry. Some may allow a small proportion of revenues to come from this area.

Avoids companies that derive significant income from pornography and related areas. Strategies vary.

Has policies relating to human rights issues. Typically require companies to demonstrate higher standards, although some managers work to encourage improvements. Investee companies are often judged against internationally agreed norms or standards. Strategies vary.

Has policies to avoid companies that employ children.

Has policies that exclude companies or other assets which operate in, or are owned by regimes which are not democratic, or where people may be oppressed. May use eg. Freedom House research. Strategies vary.

Has a policy which excludes assets with involvement in Modern Slavery

Have policies or themes that set out the position on investment in the water sector and/or sanitation. Strategies vary.

Has policies that relate to corporate governance issues such as board structure, executive remuneration, bribery and/or corporate corruption. These funds will typically avoid companies with poor practices. Strategies vary.

Avoids investing in companies with poor governance practices.(e.g. board structure, management practices etc.) Views may however vary on what counts as 'poor' practices - and funds may not immediately divest as they may prefer to work to encourage higher standards.

Exclude companies that are subject to United Nations sanctions. See eg https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/un-sc-consolidated-list

Has policies explaining how managers will respond to assets / companies that do not comply with relevant anti-bribery and anti-corruption standards or laws. Strategies vary; options include stewardship/ engagement and divestment - or a combination.

Encourage the companies they invest in to have more diverse board structures (e.g. more women on boards)

Aim to encourage higher ESG standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement /voting activity

Find options that have an external committee that helps steer or advise managers on sustainability, ethical, stewardship or ESG policy or strategy related issues. These people may be paid for their time but are not employees of the fund manager.

Find fund / asset managers that factor in 'environmental, social and governance' issues as part of their investment decision making process. A focus on 'ESG' typically means a fund is carrying out additional research to help reduce ESG related risks. It does not necessarily mean a focus on sustainability. Strategies vary. See fund literature.

Invests more than half of their money in smaller or medium sized companies. (i.e. below around £5 -10 billion)

Invests in a combination of small, medium and larger (potentially multinational) companies / assets.

Invests >25% of their capital in companies where a major part of their business is focused on helping to address environmental or social challenges.

Invests >50% of their capital in companies where a major part of their business is focused on helping to address environmental or social challenges.

Invests in between 5-25% of capital in assets which meet the EU Taxonomy requirements. This will typically require adding up the proportion of each individual company's activity that is regarded as 'green' so that the manager can produce an overall total for the whole fund or portfolio.

Invests more than 25% of capital in assets which meet the EU Taxonomy requirements. This will typically require adding up the proportion of each individual company's activity that is regarded as 'green' so that the manager can produce an overall total for the whole fund or portfolio.

Has policies that aim to help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies they regard as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary.

Aims to measure the positive real world environmental and / or social benefits that are associated with their investment strategy. Investments that aim to deliver positive impacts and measure those impacts may be referred to as 'Impact' - although impact measurement is not restricted to Impact investments. Strategies vary.

Investments which are specifically marketed as ‘Impact investments' and work to deliver both financial performance and specific, measurable positive, real world social and/or environmental benefits. Strategies vary.

Specifically sets out to help deliver positive environmental impacts, benefits or 'real world' outcomes.

Specifically states that they aim to deliver positive social (i.e. people related) impacts and/or outcomes.

Directs investment towards companies where a major part of their business is about solving environmental challenges. e.g. companies helping to address climate change.

Invest in companies where a major part of their business is specifically aimed at helping to address social challenges. e.g. companies helping to address poverty.

Aims to deliver positive environmental and or social impacts (real world benefits) through its engagement with investee assets

Invests more than 50% of capital in assets which are regarded as being significantly focused on providing solutions to environmental or social challenges. Strategies vary.

Policy explains the ways in which the manager believes things need to change in order to deliver a more sustainable future, which they are working to help achieve.

Focuses on finding and investing in companies with positive / beneficial attributes. This strategy can be applied in addition to exclusion criteria and engagement/stewardship activity.

Invest more heavily in assets which have higher ESG ratings/standards or scores and less heavily in companies with lower ESG ratings. Where this is central to the strategy you should expect assets in most sectors. Strategies vary.

Aims to avoid companies that do significant harm. This originates from the EU’s sustainable finance ‘DNSH’ (do no significant harm) work, which is not necessarily used by UK investors.

Invests in assets which can be 'mapped' (reviewed) their investment selection and management strategies to identify which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the fund is helping to address.

Investment selection process uses internationally agreed 'norms' (e.g. United Nations Global Compact - UNGC - or the UN Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) alongside additional SRI criteria such as positive or negative stock selection policies and/or stewardship strategies.

Invests in assets which have an ESG strategy (which is typically focused on avoiding companies that pose environmental, social or governance related risks) together with additional criteria such as positive and/or negative screens, themes and stewardship strategies.

Publish explanations of their ethical, social and/or environmental policies online (i.e. investment decision making strategies/ buy/sell &/or asset management strategies).

Uses specialist strategies to aid performance which involve ‘lending’ assets to others at specific points in time.

Holds between 70-79% of assets which align to the sustainability objectives; which are not being held purely for risk management purposes, such as derivatives and cash equivalent assets.

All assets - except cash - meet the sustainability criteria published in strategy documentation.

Designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in sustainability issues.

Designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in ‘Impact investment’ which help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies regarded as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary.

Available via a tax efficient ISA product wrapper.

Find options classified under Article 9 of the EU’s SFDR (Sustainable Finance Disclosure Requirements). Article 9 of the SFDR applies to financial products that have sustainable investment 'objectives' - including emissions reduction objectives. (These may currently be referred to as 'impact' funds or aiming to deliver clear, specific positive outcomes.) These rules do not currently apply in the UK so product managers may leave this field blank.

Find fund / asset management companies that are smaller or specialise in particular areas - notably, ideally ESG related. Strategies vary.

Finds fund / asset management companies that have a published company wide stewardship, engagement and / or responsible ownership policy or strategy that covers all investments. Stewardship typically involves encouraging higher ESG standards through voting and dialogue.

Find fund / asset management companies that actively encourage higher 'environmental, social and governance' and / or 'sustainable and responsible investment' practices across investee companies - typically where the aim is to encourage positive change that is aligned with the best interests of investors. Strategies vary. See additional information and options.

Find fund / asset managers that vote all* the shares they own at Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings. A commitment to voting shares is a key indicator of 'responsible share ownership' demonstrating their support for or disagreement with management policy. (*situations can legitimately, occasionally occur where voting proves impossible, but in principle all shares should be voted.)

Find fund / asset managers that consider responsible ownership and ESG to be a key differentiator for their business.

Find fund / asset management companies that take sustainability criteria into account when selecting and/or managing all of their property / real estate investments.

The leadership team of this fund / asset manager have performance targets linked to environmental goals.

Find fund / asset management companies that aim to align all their investments (across all funds) to help meet the aims of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Find options run by managers that apply Responsible ownership or 'Stewardship' policies to all or most of their investment assets. This means active involvement (e.g. voting, dialogue) with the companies across all or most funds, products and services.

Find fund / asset management companies that consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues when deciding whether or not to invest in a company for all / almost all of their funds and other assets. This is increasingly seen as part of sound risk management.

Finds organisations / fund managers that have an in-house (company wide) diversity improvement programme - meaning that they are working to ensure that within their own businesses they employ people from diverse backgrounds - often typically focused on ethnicity and/or sex.

Find fund / asset management companies that encourage the companies they invest in to have strong diversity, race, gender and other equality policies across all assets held, not simply screened or themed SRI/ESG funds. (ie Asset Management company wide).

This fund / asset management company invests in companies which have recently listed on a stock exchange (which is important as it can help grow new businesses).

Fund / asset management company has investments in bonds designed to meet sustainability requirements - however these assets may not be 'ringfenced' for this purpose. See website for details.

Fund management entity offers unstructured intermediary training on sustainable investment (ie for financial advisers and wealth managers)

Find fund / asset management companies that have signed up to the UN backed 'Principles of Responsible Investment'.

Find fund / asset management companies that have partnered with Fund EcoMarket - meaning that they are helping to improve access to information on sustainable and responsible investment by paying an annual fee to us which enables us to publish information for free. Partner funds are listed ahead of other funds and have their logos displayed.

This fund / asset manager has signed up to the UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) program which aims to encourage more responsible banking practices – focused on environmental and social issues.

A member of the Taskforce for Nature Related Financial Disclosures group which aims to aid risk management and shift money towards nature-positive outcomes.

Fund management entity is a member of the Investment Association https://www.theia.org/

Find fund / asset management companies that employ people to steer and support fund managers in voting shares at company AGM's and EGMs in ways that are consistent with encouraging higher ESG/sustainability standards.

Find a fund / asset management company that directly employs specialist ESG/SRI/sustainability researchers or analysts. This allows asset managers to discuss environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities directly with companies.

Find fund / asset management companies that makes use of expert external research companies. This can help deliver specialist expertise and means resources are pooled with other investors.

Find fund / asset managers that are signatories to the FRC UK Stewardship Code, which sets out a framework for constructive investor / investee relations where managers are encouraged to behave like responsible, typically longer term 'company owners'.

Find fund / asset management companies that regularly initiate or run industry wide (collaborative) investor projects aimed at raising environmental, social and governance standards amongst investee companies.

Find fund / asset management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage more responsible corporate taxation.

Fund / asset manager has a stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that involves working with fossil fuel companies on climate change related issues. See fund manager website for details.

Fund / asset manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy with involves encouraging investee asset to reduce plastic waste and pollution.

Fund / asset manager has a stewardship / responsible ownership policy that means they are working to encourage more responsible mining practices - where environmental and social issues are properly dealt with by the companies they invest in.

The fund / asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy that focuses on biodiversity and nature issues relating to the assets they invest the aim of which will be to reduce harm and or deliver improvement. Strategies vary. https://tnfd.global

Fund / asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy which means they are working to encourage the shift to more sustainable business practices in ways that respect and are sensitive to social issues and the impact change has on people effected by the changes that are taking place. https://www.transitionpathwayinitiative.org/ https://transitiontaskforce.net/

Fund / asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place which aims to address human rights issues in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers) with the aim of raising standards

Fund / asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place that aims to improve labour standards for the benefit of employees in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers)

Fund / asset management company has a stewardship strategy in place which involves working to raise diversity, equality and inclusion standards across investee assets

Fund / asset managers have stewardship strategies in place that focus on improving governance standards across investee assets

Has a stewardship / responsible ownership strategy that encourages responsible supply chain - ie the managers will discuss environmental, social and governance issues with investee companies with the aim of raising standards

Working to address sustainability, ESG and related concerns around artificial intelligence.

Escalation policies describe how a manager will proceed if stewardship / engagement activity is not successful in the short term.

Find fund / asset management companies (not funds) that avoid investment in 'controversial weapons' across all of their funds and other investment vehicles.

Find fund / asset management companies that avoid investment in tobacco (manufacturing) companies across all their assets.

Find fund / asset management companies that avoid investment in fossil fuel companies (e.g. coal, oil and gas) across all of their funds. (and/ or other assets.)

Find funds / asset managers that are reviewing, or have reviewed, their exposure to carbon intensive industries including (but not only) mining, oil and gas companies. (Typically with reference to climate change.)

This fund / asset manager excludes direct investment in the coal mining industry. Managers ability to do this may depend on the geographic regions in which they invest.

Fund / asset management organisations that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’. Strategies vary - this area is changing rapidly.

This fund / asset management company has set a date by which they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.

Find fund / asset management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.

Finds organisations / fund managers that have a company wide carbon transition plan - meaning that they have plotted a path to how they will move away from activities that produce or use carbon based energy sources (that emit greenhouse gases) towards clean, alternative, renewable energy sources.

Finds organisations / fund managers that have published ‘forward looking climate metrics’ e.g. 'implied temperature rise' data that are a total of the asset management company's share (% owned) of all the investee company emissions of the assets they manage, as well as their own direct and other indirect emissions.

This fund / asset management company plans to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (CO2e) emissions with the help of a scheme that will lock away an amount of carbon that is equivalent to the company’s own emissions – so that the end result is ‘net zero’. Calculations and scope vary.

Finds organisations / fund management companies that are in the process of working out how to make a ‘net zero commitment’ - meaning that when that is finalised they will have started the process of reducing their total greenhouse gas emissions to 'zero'.

See https://sciencebasedtargets.org/

Find fund / asset management companies that publish a report detailing their responsible investment ownership - also known as 'Stewardship' - activity.

Find fund / asset management companies that publish information about their sustainable and responsible investment strategies on their company website.

Find fund / asset management companies that will supply information about their sustainable and responsible investment activity on request.

Fund / asset management companies that publish a full record of how they vote their shares at AGMs (annual general meetings) and EGMs (extraordinary general meetings). Voting strategies have an important role to play encouraging higher environmental, social and governance standards.

This fund / asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are to become a sustainable business - without significant negative environmental or social impacts.

This fund / asset management company has published a plan that explains how they will align to the climate change commitments made at the Paris Climate Talks, COP21.

This fund / asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are going to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.