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Fund Name(s):
  • Ninety One Global Environment Fund
Fund Name SRI Style Product Region Asset Type Launch Date
Ninety One Global Environment Fund Environmental Style OEIC Global Equity 02/12/2019

Fund Size: £3605.00m

Total screened & themed / SRI assets: £5326.00

Total Responsible Ownership assets: £115962.00

Total assets under management: £126026.00

As at: 31/03/24

Overview

The Ninety One Global Environment Strategy is a global equity portfolio that allocates to companies that we believe will enable the process of sustainable decarbonisation while generating a positive impact through the concept of “carbon avoided”. It employs a bespoke bottom-up investment process designed specifically for this diverse universe of global equities. The process incorporates proprietary models, such as our environmental/carbon avoided screen and our detailed company-level fundamental financial and risk modelling. We provide transparency on positions and company engagement through our annual Impact Report. This process reflects our core beliefs of sustainable long-term investing and active engagement.

We believe in sustainability with substance. We see the shift towards sustainability as offering a once-in-a-generation opportunity and a fundamental reappraisal of value creation.

Filters

Fund information

Sustainability - General

Sustainability theme or focus

Encourage more sustainable practices through stewardship

UN Global Compact linked exclusion policy

Sustainability policy

Report against sustainability objectives

Environmental - General

Waste management policy or theme

Favours cleaner, greener companies

Resource efficiency policy or theme

Environmental policy

Limits exposure to carbon intensive industries

Nature & Biodiversity

Biodiversity / nature policy

Climate Change & Energy

Clean / renewable energy theme or focus

Energy efficiency theme

Fracking and tar sands excluded

Coal, oil & / or gas majors excluded

Climate change / greenhouse gas emissions policy

Encourage transition to low carbon through stewardship activity

Require net zero action plan from all/most companies

Invests in clean energy / renewables

Fossil fuel reserves exclusion

Social / Employment

Diversity, equality & inclusion Policy (fund level)

Favours companies with strong social policies

Ethical Values Led Exclusions

Armaments manufacturers avoided

Tobacco and related product manufacturers excluded

Tobacco and related products - avoid where revenue > 5%

Civilian firearms production exclusion

Gilts & Sovereigns

Gilts / government bonds - exclude some

Gilts / government bonds - exclude all

Does not invest in sovereigns

Governance & Management

Avoids companies with poor governance

Encourage higher ESG standards through stewardship activity

Encourage board diversity e.g. gender

UN sanctions exclusion

Fund Governance

ESG integration strategy

Asset Size

Invests mostly in large cap companies / assets

Over 50% large cap companies

Targeted Positive Investments

Invests >50% of fund in environmental/social solutions companies

Invests >25% of fund in environmental/social solutions companies

EU Sustainable Finance Taxonomy holdings >25% of fund assets

EU Sustainable Finance Taxonomy holdings 5-25% of fund assets

Impact Methodologies

Aims to generate positive impacts (or 'outcomes')

Measures positive impacts

Positive environmental impact theme

Described as an ‘impact investment fund’

Invests in environmental solutions companies

Over 50% in assets providing environmental or social ‘solutions’

Publish ‘theory of change’ explanation

How The Fund Works

Positive selection bias

Limited / few ethical exclusions

Focus on ESG risk mitigation

Do not use stock / securities lending

Unscreened Assets & Cash

Assets typically aligned to sustainability objectives 70 - 79%

Assets typically aligned to sustainability objectives 80 – 89%

Assets typically aligned to sustainability objectives > 90%

Intended Clients & Product Options

Intended for clients who want to have a positive impact

Intended for investors interested in sustainability

Labels & Accreditations

RSMR rated

SDR Labelled

Fund management company information

About The Business

Integrates ESG factors into all / most (AFM) fund research

ESG / SRI engagement (AFM company wide)

Senior management KPIs include environmental goals (AFM company wide)

Responsible ownership policy for non SRI funds (AFM company wide)

Responsible ownership / stewardship policy or strategy (AFM company wide)

In-house diversity improvement programme (AFM company wide)

SDG aligned aims / objectives (AFM company wide)

Vote all* shares at AGMs / EGMs (AFM company wide)

Offer structured intermediary training on sustainable investment

Collaborations & Affiliations

GFANZ member (AFM company wide)

PRI signatory

UN Net Zero Asset Owners / Managers Alliance member

Climate Action 100+ or IIGCC member (under review)

Investment Association (IA) member

TNFD forum member (AFM company wide)

Resources

In-house responsible ownership / voting expertise

ESG specialists on all investment desks (AFM company wide)

Use specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability research companies

Employ specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability researchers

Accreditations

UK Stewardship Code signatory (AFM company wide)

PRI A+ rated (AFM company wide)

Engagement Approach

Engaging on responsible supply chain issues

Engaging with fossil fuel companies on climate change

Engaging on biodiversity / nature issues

Engaging to encourage responsible mining practices

Engaging on mental health issues

Engaging to reduce plastics pollution / waste

Engaging on climate change issues

Engaging on human rights issues

Engaging to encourage a Just Transition

Engaging on governance issues

Engaging on diversity, equality and / or inclusion issues

Engaging on labour / employment issues

Regularly lead collaborative ESG initiatives (AFM company wide)

Company Wide Exclusions

Controversial weapons avoidance policy (AFM company wide)

Climate & Net Zero Transition

Net Zero - have set a Net Zero target date (AFM company wide)

Net Zero commitment (AFM company wide)

Voting policy includes net zero targets (AFM company wide)

Transparency

Full SRI / responsible ownership policy information on company website

Publish full voting record (AFM company wide)

Just Transition policy on website (AFM company wide)

Publish responsible ownership / stewardship report (AFM company wide)

Sustainability transition plan publicly available (AFM company wide)

Paris Alignment plan publicly available (AFM company wide)

Net Zero transition plan publicly available (AFM company wide)

Dialshifter statement

Policy

The flow of capital into sustainable decarbonisation represents a powerful multi-year structural growth driver. Ninety One's Global Environment Fund offers investors the opportunity to invest in a diverse portfolio of companies that stand to benefit from decarbonisation. We believe there are three compelling reasons to allocate to a portfolio of companies that will enable the process of sustainable decarbonisation:

  • To gain exposure to a new structural growth area in an otherwise cyclically elevated market backdrop
  • Correct the structural underexposure to the enablers and beneficiaries of decarbonisation.
  • Hedge against systemic carbon risk in portfolios

 

Achieving such an allocation requires the ability to firstly rigorously screen for and accurately measure the positive carbon impact of a company, before qualitatively appraising its fundamental characteristics. We only include companies in the universe where we are confident that a company plays an important part in offering environmental products and solutions, and where revenues can be directly associated with the concept of ‘carbon avoided’.

 

The product employs a bespoke bottom-up investment process designed specifically for this diverse universe of global equities. The process combines proprietary models, such as our environmental/carbon avoided screen, the idea generation ranking process and our detailed company level fundamental financial and risk modelling, with our qualitative insights, judgments and analysis. We provide transparency on positions and company engagement through our annual Impact Report. This process reflects our core beliefs of sustainable long-term investing and active engagement.

 

We own companies that we believe will be beneficiaries of sustainable decarbonisation. This is a high conviction concentrated portfolio of best ideas managed to a long-term investment horizon. Portfolio holdings will exhibit three characteristics:

  • Structural Growth
  • Sustainable Returns
  • Competitive Advantage

 

Our investment approach uses a proprietary screen to establish a universe of ~1700 companies providing environmental solutions (covering Renewable Energy, Electrification and Resource Efficiency) that are most likely to benefit from sustainable decarbonisation, incorporating Scope 1, 2 & 3 carbon emissions (risk) and carbon avoided (impact).

The screen incudes:

  • Bespoke Ninety One universe based on decarbonisation revenues
  • Utilising BICS classifications down to level 6
  • >50% of revenue from Renewable Energy, Resource Efficiency and Electrification
  • Exclude companies with >5% revenues from oil, gas and coal*

 

 

While the focus of the Global Environment strategy is on investing in companies aligned with sustainable decarbonisation, we also focus on broader ESG issues and risks through our robust assessment of these issues in the investment process, combined with our commitment to engage proactively with all companies held in the portfolio. We assess the extent to which companies are managing their externalities (positive or negative) across key stakeholders – natural, human, and social capital. We believe the market’s myopic focus on financial data means it often overlooks these drivers of long-term shareholder value. Where any ESG issue is not considered to be best practice, this will become an engagement target for the company.

 

*Specifically, we use the following BICs subsectors for this exclusion: Engines & Parts Manufacturing, Exhausts & Emissions Manufacturing, Oil & Gas, Diesel Locomotives Manufacturing, Oil & Gas Infrastructure Construction, Oilfield Chemicals Manufacturing, Coal Mining. We do not exclude the Utility sector given the significant potential to contribute materially to decarbonisation.

Process

The Global Environment Strategy employs a bespoke bottom-up investment process designed specifically for the relevant diverse universe of global equities. The process incorporates proprietary models, such as our environmental/carbon avoided screen and our detailed company-level fundamental financial and risk modelling, but ultimately relies on our qualitative decisions.

Our process has been developed over many years of investing in global equity markets with a focus on environmental/carbon screening, fundamental growth, returns based investment analysis with a focus on sustainability and bottom-up stock selection.

The process includes five clear stages:

 

1)  Universe screen

During the initial screening stage, we apply a two-part screening process:

Step one – Environmental Revenues: Initially, we identify those companies that are driving this 'unprecedented shift in energy systems and transport’. It is important to think not just about the direct beneficiaries of decarbonization, but the entire related supply chain that needs to be built up. The companies which will benefit from the transition to a low carbon economy will likely sit within sectors including industrials, utilities, energy, technology, materials, chemicals and automotive sectors, which represent almost 80% of the GICS.

Our investment framework, created for the transition, encapsulates that there will be winners and losers; for example, as renewable energy grows, fossil electric generation will decline, and we have consequently excluded companies which have revenues that would be significantly eroded by the transition.

 

Step two – Decarbonization: Once we have found companies that will enable the process of sustainable decarbonization, we need to determine which companies’ products are genuinely avoiding carbon. We do this through measuring carbon risk and carbon impact as explained below:

  • Carbon Risk: While the companies in which we invest are by nature low carbon risk because their business models are highly exposed to sustainable decarbonisation, we believe it’s still very important to monitor and track their carbon footprints. In our view, this means measuring the carbon footprint of every company, including both direct (Scope 1 and 2) and indirect emissions (Scope 3). We work with leading providers of carbon data to estimate all indirect emissions alongside direct emissions where these are not reported by companies, and therefore give a full picture of each company’s carbon footprint including its supply chain and the footprint of the products once they are used.

During this screening stage, we see:

  1. Scope 1 and 2 carbon footprints as a good proxy for how efficiently the company is managing its business
  2. The upstream part of Scope 3 acts as a proxy for the efficiency of a company’s supply chain and
  3. The downstream part of Scope 3 as representative of the efficiency of a company’s products.

 

  • Carbon Impact: To measure this, we use the concept of ‘carbon avoided’. This examines whether the company’s products or services are better in terms of their carbon footprint than the alternative. From here we undergo further analysis to estimate whether the companies in the universe have products and services that avoid carbon. We work with Carbon Disclosure Project to help estimate carbon avoided where it is not reported by companies.

Only companies which we believe the products and services avoid carbon and we can quantify that carbon is avoided are included in the universe. The ultimate universe consists of over 1,700 companies with a total market cap of US$14 trillion, distributed between the US, China and the rest of the world.

 

 

2) Idea generation

The main source of our idea generation is a screen for companies based on key financial, sustainability and competitive advantage metrics. The metrics chosen derives from decades of investment team and firm-wide experience as well as rigorous back-testing and relevant cross-sector analysis. This screen directs our analyst research which can then lead to further qualitative idea generation.

Given that the universe is rapidly-evolving in a disruptive market, we have analysed several sectors that we believe will share similar characteristics. The key attributes we highlight for relevant cross-sector comparison and analysis include:

  • Rapidly improving technology
  • Continuously falling costs
  • Large capital requirements

This spans many sectors where capital intensity meets technology, with autos, IT and infrastructure/utilities the most relevant. We carried out in depth back-testing on these sectors, and our idea generation screen highlights companies who perform best on metrics most correlated with alpha generation and this is where our analysts focus their attention.

We have also integrated an internal sustainability score into this part of the process. This indicator assesses companies across various sustainability and ESG factors that we’ve identified as being likely to have a financial impact on a company, with each company appraised relative to its sector. Once a company screens to be included in stage 3 (Fundamental Analysis), we perform our own sustainability analysis of the company. This is an integral part of investment process as we believe that companies with strong sustainability characteristics and who minimise their negative externalities will outperform over time.

 

 

3) Fundamental analysis

Once a company comes through our idea generation screen, we move it to the next stage of the investment process where the team conducts the fundamental analysis.

The first stage of our fundamental analysis process is focused on the company’s business model and whether it fits with our requirement for structural growth, sustainable returns and competitive advantage. At this stage we also carry out our own sustainability analysis by assessing the externalities generated by the company. When we are comfortable that the company fulfils our requirement and there are no material sustainability risks, we take it forward to a second, more detailed stage of fundamental analysis.

We also conduct detailed fundamental analysis of sub-sectors and technologies exposed to the transition to a low carbon economy. We build sector supply and demand models (e.g., our proprietary global 2 degree model) and undertake thematic research which is presented in our thought pieces “Energy 3.0” which can be found on our website and here.. This helps us to inform and stress test our company models.

The key areas of our company research are described below:

Company analysis

The investment team works through a rigorous checklist for each investment idea. We want to find the best companies in our universe which are intrinsically undervalued. Clean balance sheets and clear business models are a competitive advantage in many parts of this volatile sector.

The team conducts fundamental analysis by constructing detailed models. Our technical understanding and experience looking at these industries, combined with access to the best and most granular data, enables us to construct detailed models that allow us to test different assumptions.

We build an investment case for each idea and focus on the following key factors:

 

Competitive advantage

Our competitive advantage analysis can be simplified by answering the key questions/topics shown below:

  1. Company factors: Technology, brand, cost competitiveness, R&D spend, market share
  2. Market factors: Market growth, pricing power, barriers to entry, substitutes, consumer acceptance

We use these factors to determine the long-term sustainability of the business in question. In addition, we believe a strong balance sheet and outstanding management are also a competitive advantage and ensure we cover these factors during our fundamental analysis.

 

Intrinsic Value

The team conducts full financial and valuation analysis by constructing individual company models to determine the growth, earnings and intrinsic value of the companies under review. Our proprietary equity models are maintained within the team and contain our own forecasts. Research from earlier parts of the process is used and built on here. In undertaking full income statement, cashflow statement and balance sheet analysis we can focus on specific financial metrics which we believe to be the drivers of long-term returns. The output of the equity analysis is a target price for the company across different scenarios.

The target price is based on three main components with returns and cash flow being prioritised:

  • Free cashflow (DCF)
  • Returns analysis (ROCE)
  • Multiples analysis (EV/DACF, EV/EBITDA, P/E, P/B)

 

Return profile and growth

It is important to note that profitable growth and efficient use of capital is embedded within each of the above calculations. Structural growth and sustainable returns are two key drivers of our stock selection and analysis. We believe growth and returns are key factors in determining a reasonable fair value for any company. We therefore do not claim to be only growth or only value investors, instead we invest in the leading companies within our universe that we believe are intrinsically undervalued.

 

Management, sustainability/ESG and engagement

Capital allocation decisions and operational performance are important considerations for us when evaluating management. Much of these considerations feed into our competitive advantage and valuation work. We also place huge significance on sustainability factors as highlighted in our initial screens. Sustainability reports and net zero emissions targets are important throughout our fundamental analysis as well as topics featuring in team debates.

This fundamental bottom-up research stage of the investment process also includes company meetings and onsite visits where we will focus on all the key factors mentioned above. We will only buy a stock for the portfolio when we have met with company management.

When all factors described above score positively for an investment idea, we will add it to our list of best ideas and compare to existing holdings.

 

 

4) Portfolio construction

The best ideas generated through stages 1 – 3 of the investment process are used to construct a portfolio in line with the risk constraints. Ideas are presented in weekly investment meetings and are challenged by the investment team. We operate a team-based approach and all team members have input into idea generation and analysis, with the co-portfolio managers having ultimate decision-making responsibility for the portfolio composition. We will compare any new ideas to the current portfolio characteristics across the main inputs of our investment process.

The portfolio is constructed bottom-up in a benchmark-agnostic fashion. Positions are weighted according to our target prices, strength of competitive advantage and the contribution to the portfolio's risk. The portfolio is then reviewed at a sub-sector level with regards to overall risk budget, sub-sector risks, stress tests and style analytics metrics. Weightings may then be adjusted accordingly. We use MSCI Barra One for quantitative portfolio risk analysis and optimisation.

We will only buy a stock which/when:

  • Positively contributes to sustainable decarbonisation
  • Exhibits combination of structural growth, sustainable returns and competitive advantage
  • Exhibits no material sustainability issues
  • Offers upside in company valuation model
  • We have met company management
  • We have completed our fundamental financial, business and sustainability analysis
  • Both co-portfolio managers agree on the investment decision

 

Sell discipline

We will revisit a stock if:

  • There is a change in structural growth, sustainable returns or competitive advantage or our assessments of ESG risks
  • Share price reaches model target price
  • More attractive upside from new ideas

Subsequently stocks are typically sold when:

  • Stock has reached fair value
  • More attractive opportunity has emerged
  • Investment case is no longer applicable and reason for investment case revisit holds
  • Change in company fundamentals
  • Change in regulatory/industry environment
  • Adverse change in a company's environmental, social, corporate governance or capital allocation policies.

 

 

5) Engagement and monitoring

We meet management and engage with all portfolio companies on a regular basis. Topics of engagement are not only on financial and operational issues, but any material sustainability issues. We have ongoing engagement goals for each company and will report on this engagement and progress in our annual Impact Report. For example, any company that has sustainability characteristics or externalities which are not best in class, automatically becomes an engagement target. We list the engagement targets for each company, along with the reasons why we believe the company fits in the portfolio and the carbon data in our annual impact report.

In our Annual Impact Report, we provide transparency on positions and company engagement, as well as an explanation of why we believe the companies will see structural growth and have a competitive advantage. This report presents significant developments throughout the year, including all environmental metrics for the portfolio and underlying holding as well as engagement goals and progress towards those goals.

We are not naïve on where we can and can’t have influence. There are some engagement goals, for example better carbon disclosure, where we would hope to have significant progress in the coming years; others, for example improved gender diversity in the workforce, will regrettably take more time, but we believe are still worth discussing.

 

 

Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies

Sustainability knowledge and expertise is held across a number of areas of the business. The Sustainability Committee oversees the wider sustainability ecosystem in the business. Ninety One’s firm-wide sustainability initiatives are overseen by the Chief Sustainability Officer. This includes investment integration, advocacy, corporate transition to net zero and developing and implementing efforts to mobilise dedicated funding for an inclusive net zero transition.

 

Ultimately, the investment teams have responsibility for managing sustainability risks and opportunities within their investment process through their integration frameworks. We place a big emphasis on ensuring that the investment teams have the appropriate knowledge, insights, data and tools so that the expertise is a truly integrated part of the investment process. The investment teams are supported by dedicated ESG specialists across our Sustainability and Investment Risk team. We also have further expertise that we can draw upon from the portfolio managers managing our dedicated sustainable strategies, and other sustainability specialists that are dedicated to individual investment teams.

 

We seek to contribute meaningfully to the conversation and to encourage a deeper focus on sustainability-related issues in all of the jurisdictions where we invest. We may collaborate with other investors as part of an engagement strategy if it can contribute to achieving our engagement objectives. Our membership of regional and global organisations facilitates this.

 

The following details our firmwide collaborative partnerships and our role: (Organisation name and start date)

  • Access to Medicine Foundation (2023)
    • Key focus: To have a positive impact on expanding access to medicine and encourage essential healthcare companies to do more to reach people in low- and middle-income countries.
    • Our Role: Ninety One has pledged support to the Foundation’s research and signed the Access to Medicine Index Investor Statement. 
  • ASCOR project (2021)
    • Key focus: Develop an assessment framework for sovereigns’ performance and governance as they transition – this includes the consideration of a just transition.
    • Our Role: We are working with the ASCOR project to better assess sovereign alignment and sovereign carbon transition risks. Over the year, we contributed to the development of the ASCOR tool.
  • Association for Savings and Investment (ASISA) (2008)
    • Key Focus: To ensure that the South African savings and investment industry remains relevant and sustainable into the future in the interest of its members, the country and its citizens.
    • Our Role: We actively participate in collaborative engagements and working groups and serve on the Responsible Investment Committee. Thabo Khojane, Managing Director for our South African business, is a member of ASISA's board and several committees, include the Executive Committee.
  • The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) (2010)
    • Key Focus: To enable companies, cities, states and regions to measure and manage their environmental impacts.
    • Our Role: We are involved in engagements with companies regarding their disclosure to CDP. In 2022, 30% of the companies we engaged with on climate committed to disclose to CDP.
  • Chatham House Asia-Pacific Programme (2018)
    • Key Focus: This programme provides objective analysis of the key issues affecting South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia and the Pacific, engaging decision-makers and undertaking original research with partners in the region to inform and influence positive policy decisions.
    • Our Role: We aim to actively contribute to conversations with academics, diplomats and policymakers.
  • Climate Action 100+ (2018)
    • Key Focus: An investor initiative to ensure the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change.
    • Our Role: We are involved in collaborative engagements with companies to ensure they are minimising and disclosing the risks presented by climate change. We co-lead on three companies and participate in two more.
  • Climate Bonds Initiative (2021)
    • Key focus: An international organisation working to mobilise the bond market, for climate change solutions
    • Our Role: We contribute to advocacy aligned with our investment thinking, policy advocacy and industry collaboration
  • Crisis Group (2014)
    • Key focus: The International Crisis Group is an independent organisation working to prevent wars and shape policies that will build a more peaceful world. Crisis Group sounds the alarm to prevent deadly conflict.
    • Our Role: We leverage Crisis Group’s expertise in our investment decision-making and engagements. We work to create awareness and broaden Crisis Group’s support base. We are involved with the group’s International Advisory Council and Ambassador Council.
  • Emerging Markets Investor Alliance (2019)
    • Key focus: Enables institutional emerging market investors to support good governance, promote sustainable development, and improve investment performance in the governments and companies in which they invest.
    • Our Role: We support the initiative and are involved in its working groups, particularly relating to fiscal transparency, leading on some and participating in others.
  • FAIRR (2019)
    • Key focus: To raise awareness of the material ESG risks and opportunities caused by intensive livestock production
    • Our Role: We participate in collaborative conversations to identify and engage on material ESG risks and opportunities in global protein supply chains.
  • Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) (2021)
    • Key focus: Brings together firms from the leading net zero initiatives across the financial system to accelerate the transition to net zero emissions by 2050 at the latest.
    • Our Role: We are active members of multiple working groups: ‘private capital mobilization’; ‘managed phase-out’ and ‘portfolio alignment metrics’ and contributed to multiple public engagements as thought leaders on emerging market transition investing.
  • Global Climate Finance Centre (GCFC) (2023)
    • Key focus: A think tank and research hub convening stakeholders and providing capacity building for financial actors globally to support the scale-up of well-functioning, aligned green finance markets to drive the growth of climate finance.
    • Our Role: Ninety One is a founding member.
  • Global Investor Commission on Mining 2030 (2023)
    • Key focus: A multi-stakeholder Commission, which recognises the mining industry’s role in the transition to a low carbon economy, and the need for the industry to manage systemic risks which threaten its social license to operate.
    • Our Role: We participate through the investor steering committee. 
  • Institute of International Finance (IIF) (2021)
    • Key focus: Supports the financial industry in the management to risks, to develop sound industry practices and to advocate for regulatory, financial and economic policies that are in the broad interest of its members and foster global financial stability and sustainable economic growth.
    • Our Role: We participate in global membership meetings and collaborative efforts on global financial policy and regulatory matters.
  • Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC) (2018)
    • Key focus: To provide investors with a collaborative platform to encourage public policies, investment practices and corporate behaviour that address long-term risks and opportunities associated with climate change.
    • Our Role: We are a participant in the organisation, which includes taking part in engagements and providing information for thought papers. We continue to co-chair the Investor Practices programme and participate in the net zero implementation and corporate bond stewardship working groups.
  • The Investment Association (UK) (2002)
    • Key focus: To help the industry support the economy with stable, long-term finance, ensuring investors have access to fair and effective markets and embedding the highest standards of sustainable governance in the UK.
    • Our Role: We are full members and take part in various working groups.
  • The Investor Forum (2017)
    • Key focus: To position stewardship at the heart of investment decision-making by facilitating dialogue, creating long-term solutions and enhancing value.
    • Our Role: We regularly meet with the forum and participate in targeted strategic governance engagements. We have participated in several collective engagements over the year.
  • Investor Leadership Network (2022)
    • Key focus: A collaborative platform for investors interested in addressing sustainability and long-term growth across three workstreams: sustainable infrastructure, diversity in investment and climate change.
    • Our Role: We contribute to the three workstreams: private capital mobilisation, diversity equity and inclusion and climate change
  • Impact Investing Institute (2019)
    • Key focus: To accelerate the growth and improve the effectiveness of the impact investing market in the UK and internationally.  
    • Our Role: We were a founding supporter of the initiative and sat on its advisory council. We were a member of the technical working group for a report on how to mobilise institutional capital for a just transition and over this year, we have contributed to developing the Just Transition label.
  • National Business Initiative (2022)
    • Key focus: To work towards sustainable growth and development in South Africa and shape a sustainable future through responsible business action.
    • Our Role: We contribute to the working groups focused on South Africa’s net-zero transition and transition finance. We sponsored the NBI South African pavilion at COP27.
  • Nature Action 100 (2023)
    • Key focus: To drive greater corporate ambition and action to reverse nature and biodiversity loss.
    • Our Role: We have joined a collaborative engagement looking to improve nature related disclosures across a list of focus companies. 
  • Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAMI) (2021)
    • Key focus: The Net Zero Asset Managers initiative is an international group of asset managers committed to supporting the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner, in line with global efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius; and to supporting investing aligned with net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner.
    • Our Role: We are a signatory to the initiative and have set firmwide net zero targets. We have submitted our targets to the initiative and report on progress annually.
  • PRI (2008)
    • Key focus: To understand the implications of ESG factors and to support investor signatories in incorporating them into the investment process.
    • Our Role: We are a signatory, participate in workstreams and present at UNPRI events. We have taken part in various collaborative engagements.
  • Responsible Investment Association (RIA) Canada (2021)
    • Key focus: To promote responsible investment in Canada’s retail and institutional markets.
    • Our Role: We aim to support the RIA to deliver on its mandate of advancing responsible investment in Canada.
  • Say on Climate (2020)
    • Key focus: It is a collaborative effort between asset managers, asset owners, companies and other stakeholders to encourage companies to voluntarily submit their Climate Risk Transition Plan to a vote at their annual general meeting. We believe the ‘Say on Climate’ initiative will improve dialogue between companies and investors allowing shareholders to better assess the strength of the companies’ plans to address climate risk in their businesses.
    • Our Role: In 2020, Ninety One became the first listed asset manager to become a signatory on the ‘Say on Climate’ initiative. We advocate for the uptake of an advisory resolution on transition plans at AGMs.
  • SOAS China Institute (2021)
    • Key focus: The Institute promotes interdisciplinary, critically informed research and teaching on China; it channels the unrivalled breadth and depth of expertise across a wide spectrum of disciplines on China to the wider worlds of government and business.
    • Our Role: We aim to actively contribute to conversations with academics, diplomats and policy makers.
  •  Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) (2021)
    • Key focus: It aims to lead and accelerate the world's transition to a sustainable future by engaging and challenging public, private and philanthropic sectors to bring economic value in harmony with social and environmental sustainability.
    • Our Role: We are participants in the transition working group under the Asset Manager/Asset Owner Taskforce. This year we led the development of the Transition Categorisation framework.
  • Sustainable Trading Initiative (2021)
    • Key focus: It aims to transform ESG practices within the financial markets trading industry. The network brings firms together to devise practical solutions to industry specific ESG issues as well as providing a mechanism for self-assessment and benchmarking.
    • Our Role: We are part of the Founder Member Group and attend meetings and working groups. Ninety One’s Global Head of Trading is an active board member.
  •  Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) (2018)
    • Key focus: To develop consistent climate-related financial risk disclosures for use by companies, banks, and investors in providing information to stakeholders.
    • Our Role: We are a supporter of the recommendations and produce a TCFD report, which can be found within our Integrated Annual Report.
  • Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Forum (2022)
    • Key focus: To develop and deliver a risk management and disclosure framework for organisations to report and act on evolving nature-related risks, with the ultimate aim of supporting a shift in global financial flows away from nature-negative outcomes and toward nature-positive outcomes.
    • Our Role: We aim to support any consultative work to develop the TNFD recommendations.
  • Thinking Ahead Institute (2019)
    • Key focus: To mobilise capital for a sustainable future. Its members comprise asset owners, asset managers and other groups motivated to influence the industry for the good of savers worldwide.
    • Our Role: We are a founding member. We participate in the Institute’s working groups. In 2022 we took an active part in working groups covering ‘Investing for Tomorrow – Environment’, ‘Investing for Tomorrow – Society’ and made contributions to research white papers on these topics. We also campaigned for emerging markets to be treated separately to developed markets in working towards a fair transition in the global energy system.
  • Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) (2019)
    • Key focus: To assess companies’ preparedness for the transition to a low-carbon economy, supporting efforts to address climate change.
    • Our Role: We support the initiative and use the data it produces to assist our efforts to better understand climate risks and opportunities.
  • World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA) (2017)
    • Key focus: WBA has set out to develop transformative benchmarks that will compare companies' performance on the SDGs.
    • Our Role: Our Chief Executive Officer, Hendrik du Toit is a Champion, and we participate in working groups contributing to the benchmark work. We contribute to the ‘Just Transition’ benchmark collective impact coalition.

Dialshifter

This fund is helping to ‘shift the dial from brown to green’ by…

The Ninety One Global Environment Strategy is a global equity portfolio that allocates to companies that we believe will enable the process of sustainable decarbonisation while generating a positive impact through the concept of “carbon avoided”. It employs a bespoke bottom-up investment process designed specifically for this diverse universe of global equities. The process incorporates proprietary models, such as our environmental/carbon avoided screen and our detailed company-level fundamental financial and risk modelling. We provide transparency on positions and company engagement through our annual Impact Report. This process reflects our core beliefs of sustainable long-term investing and active engagement.

 

Our organisation is helping to support the Paris Climate Agreement and the Race to Net Zero by…

… thinking about our investments holistically, as entities operating within society, all depending on the natural environment. Only by understanding the connections between these can we consistently make the right decisions to preserve and grow the assets entrusted to us for future generations. Our focus on sustainable development started with our roots in Africa, particularly our private markets focus (equity, credit and infrastructure), which showed us the role that capital has to play. We believe that Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations should be integrated with all investment processes, across all asset classes.

Literature

Last amended: 22/06/23 10:19

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05/28/2025