Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Policy:

Theory of Change

The Fund has a Theory of Change which explains the link between the Fund’s investment activity and the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that it is seeking.

There is scientific consensus that the Earth’s climate is becoming warmer. The chief causes of this climate change are greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide. Human activities currently release more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than natural processes (like trees) can remove. At the current rate of climate change, experts expect far-reaching and highly damaging environmental and social impacts. A reduction in man-made greenhouse gas emissions will slow the rate of climate change and prevent these damaging effects.

Unsustainable business practices are currently contributing to this problem (such as products/services that rely on the burning of fossil fuels as an energy source). Addressing climate change requires rapid changes to the world’s energy, transport, agriculture, build environment and industrial systems through large-scale and targeted investment in infrastructure related products, services and technologies that provide either alternative, sustainable solutions, or help to mitigate and reverse the harmful effects that have already occurred.

We expect the fund to contribute to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions through our asset contribution and investor contribution, as detailed below:

Asset contribution: The Fund, as shareholder, will have an ownership stake in companies whose business is based on the ownership, operation, construction, development, or debt funding of real assets and infrastructure projects that mitigate the effects of climate change in line with one or more of the six themes set out above. We believe companies whose business is based on infrastructure projects that reduce the causes of climate change will enable a reduction in the level of greenhouse gas emissions. For a description of how the assets in each theme will contribute towards the Fund’s sustainability objective, please refer to the “Why” column in the “Investment Themes” section above. How we select assets is detailed further in the “Asset Contribution: How we Select Assets” section.

Investor Contribution: The Investor Contribution will be realised through our engagement activities. The Manager has an active engagement approach, delivered with the intention of enhancing the investee companies’ contribution to the Sustainability Objective. The Manager seeks to establish positive, collaborative and long-term relationships with companies, which facilitates constructive engagement. Our engagement activities are categorised by the following two broad objectives, both of which support the overall Fund’s sustainability objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As described below, our engagement activities seek to: 1) accelerate an asset’s positive impact by increasing the company’s contribution to avoided emissions through its products and services and, 2) reduce an asset’s potential negative impact by improving the company’s management of ESG risks, which if left unmanaged could lessen the overall quantum of greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered.

Engagement activities

1. Increase Positive Impacts: This type of engagement activity seeks to increase the investee company’s delivery of positive impact. It will increase the greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered by a company by encouraging them to increase the rate of avoided emissions generated via their climate solutions. This type of engagement will seek to influence a business’s strategy in regard to increasing the delivery of a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, for example encouraging a Utility to hasten plans to phase out fossil fuel power and increasing the percentage of renewable power in its energy mix. It will also seek to influence the company’s reinvestment decisions (including capital raising and allocation) to increase the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, such as through the development of new renewable energy capacity or encouraging growth in a part of the business that is supporting industrial efficiency. These activities support an increase in the quantum of avoided emissions and hence support the Fund’s overall Theory of Change.
2. Reduce Potential Negative Impacts: This type of engagement activity seeks to decrease the investee company’s potential negative impacts. It will increase the greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered by a company by reducing the scope 1, 2 & 3 emissions that are a consequence of solutions production, and via ensuring a company maintains its licence to operate (which can be affected by a variety of E, S and G factors) and can therefore continue to generate avoided emissions.

For detailed Information on engagement activities refer to the page number 44 of EdenTree Prospectus EIF Series 2.

Asset Contribution: How we select assets

To determine whether a company is focused on the increased provision of solutions that mitigate the effects of climate change, the Fund assess companies against its proprietary Green Infrastructure Framework, which involves two levels of sustainability assessments.

1. An assessment of the intentionality and materiality of a company’s business activities.
2. An assessment of the company’s own operations

For detailed Information refer to the page number 44 and 45 of EdenTree Prospectus EIF Series 2.

Exclusions

There are certain sectors and economic activities that we consider fundamentally unethical or misaligned with our sustainability objective, and we apply baseline exclusions to remove such companies from the pool of potential investments. The Fund will avoid investments where there is a material involvement (10% or more) in alcohol and tobacco production, conventional weapon production, gambling, the publication of violent or explicit materials, intensive farming, fossil fuel exploration and production and high-interest (sub-prime) lending. The Fund will also avoid investment where there is material involvement (10% or more) in alcohol and tobacco production, conventional weapon production, gambling, publication of violent or explicit materials, intensive farming, fossil fuel exploration and production and high interest (sub-prime) lending. The Fund will avoid companies with material operations in oppressive regimes. It will also seek to avoid companies that have exposure to the manufacture of unconventional weapons where these are defined as nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, land mines and cluster bombs. Finally, the Fund will seek to avoid companies using animals to test cosmetic, beauty or household products.

Investor Contribution: Investor Stewardship

We will engage with companies held in the Fund, as set out the Theory of Change above (“Engagement Contribution”), to support, accelerate or enhance their delivery of infrastructure related climate solutions, and to fulfil our investor contribution. We will engage directly with companies and will also seek to collaborate with other investors and organisations where appropriate, for example with policy makers or other asset managers where supportive of our engagement goals. Our engagement is carried out across all seven themes. Successful engagement can take time to be realised, potentially stretching over several years and we seek to invest for long holding periods to create successful engagement partnerships with investee businesses. With this in mind, we will engage with at least 70% of the portfolio (i.e. all holdings that meet the Fund’s minimum Sustainability Impact threshold) over the average holding period.

For detailed Information refer to the page number 45 to 47 of EdenTree Prospectus EIF Series 2.

Escalation Plans

Where progress through the milestones is deemed to be insufficient, we will employ a combination of the steps outlined below to escalate our concerns. There are several indicators that typically raise concerns that an engagement may not succeed, including poor levels of responsiveness from companies (steps 1 and 2), a lack of progress towards previously stated targets despite assurances (between steps 4 and 5 above), or notably slower progress than peers. If the concern is severe and requires immediate action, we will move immediately to step 5 and sell the investment within an appropriate timeframe, usually within 90 days.

1. Initial outreach and conversations with company – The engagement approach usually begins with an initial outreach via email or letter, followed by meetings with management and/or subject matter experts.
2. Formal correspondence – If a company does not respond to multiple attempts of contact, or if it demonstrates insufficient progress and the topic is of a severity that necessitates further action, we will initially escalate via a formal letter to the CEO or Board. This will set out our expectations, and potential means of escalation.
3. Collaborative intervention with other investors – Failing this, we will actively collaborate with other investors to escalate the engagement. This will include joining or leading collaborative engagement efforts or signing onto joint letters.
4. AGM Voting – Where necessary, and where there is further need for escalation, we will exercise its voting power at company meetings.
5. Divestment – If following a period of engagement, we fail to achieve adequate progress, the position may be sold within an appropriate timeframe.

Our in-house Sustainability Team oversees engagement and stewardship activities. Engagement is an internal function and is not outsourced to third parties. In addition, the stewardship approach is overseen by the EdenTree Sustainability Investment Advisory Panel. We are a signatory of the UK Stewardship Code 2020, published by the Financial Reporting Council, demonstrating its commitment to appropriately resourcing and conducting stewardship.

Ongoing Monitoring and Sustainability Metrics

We will monitor performance against the Fund’s Sustainability Objective on an ongoing basis, against a range of KPIs. All KPIs will be reported on an annual basis.

Asset Activities

This KPI monitors asset-level activities. It demonstrates the positive outcomes that arise as a result of directing capital towards companies that, through their assets and operations, address the causes of climate change.

• Avoided emissions (tCO2e) – emissions reductions that occur as a result of the use of the product/service, or operation of the asset. Avoided emissions represent CO2e emissions that have not been released into the atmosphere, thus reducing global warming, and so mitigating the harmful consequences of climate change. CO2e stands for carbon dioxide equivalent and includes other greenhouse gases with the same global warming potential. This KPI applies across all six investment themes as they all have the potential to generate avoided emissions.

At a minimum, we expect each of the Fund’s assets to contribute positively towards a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions every year, measured by avoided emissions. If an asset fails to make a positive contribution to avoided emissions within a year, this would be addressed through the escalation plans (as detailed under the “Escalation Plans” section).

In addition, over a 5-year rolling period we would expect to see an increase in the rate of avoided emissions delivered through the Fund’s activities as a result of the growth in output of the underlying assets, the growth of the fund and our investor contribution, and our engagement activity to increase the contribution of companies in the fund. However, we recognise that the rate of avoided emissions delivered by the Fund may fluctuate year-on-year due to external factors such as changes to broader economic conditions.

Please refer to the “Additional Metrics” section on page number 47 and 48 of EdenTree Investment Funds Series 2 Prospectus for more details.

Please refer to the “Methodology for monitoring and KPI data collection” below for further information about how we calculate the Fund’s impact.

Investor Activities

This KPI monitors the success of our engagement activities and our investor contribution in line with the Fund’s theory of change. Our engagement activities seek to increase the greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered by a company.

To deliver this contribution, we engage via two broad categories:

1. Increase Positive Impacts. This type of engagement seeks to increase the greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered by a company by encouraging them to increase the rate of avoided emissions generated via their climate solutions.
2. Reduce Potential Negative Impacts. This type of engagement seeks to increase the greenhouse gas emissions reductions delivered by a company by reducing their scope 1, 2 & 3 emissions that are a consequence of solutions production, and via ensuring a company maintains its licence to operate (which can be affected by a variety of E, S and G factors) and can therefore continue to generate avoided emissions.

For each engagement we undertake, we will set a specific engagement objective, bespoke to the topic and company in question. This objective will be aligned to the Theory of Change with a clear and relevant link back to the Fund’s overarching Sustainability Objective, meaning all objectives will ultimately seek to generate a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

A list of commonly used KPIs that would be used for reporting the outcomes of our engagement is provided in table on page number 49 of EdenTree Investment Funds Series 2 Prospectus to illustrate the link between an engagement objective and the engagement KPI.

Process:

Green Impact Infrastructure Framework

The Fund operates under our Green Impact Infrastructure Framework, which is a thematic approach that incorporates both bottom-up and top-down analysis. The Fund will seek to invest in companies that own, operate, construct, develop, or provide debt funding for real assets and projects that enable the systems and services that a society needs to work effectively in a way that demonstrates positive environmental outcomes. These investments will take place within these six themes, outlined below:

Idea generation

The Fund’s current core investment universe consists of about 200 stocks, which is continually reviewed. This number of potential investments is anticipated to grow substantially due to the investment required to meet long term governmental climate change targets and corporate net zero ambitions.

Furthermore, new additions to this universe arise through insights about market opportunities arising from the broader team at EdenTree, with particularly pertinent insights into developing technologies coming from work related to the EdenTree Green Impact Equity Fund, and insights into debt funding of related projects from work related to the EdenTree Global Impact Bond Fund. External sources of ideas include longstanding market relationships that allow us to keep informed of IPOs and capital raisings.

The investment universe is now at a scale to provide a wide selection of potential investments for different market conditions but has up until now been small enough to allow specialist firms that have been engaging with green and sustainable themes from the beginning to develop strong networks with both emerging and long established investment operators in the sector.

Alignment and Categorization

Once an investment has been determined to be aligned with the Green Infrastructure Framework, it will be assessed for its investment potential within one of the following categories:

• Core holdings, for which we would be seeking either ‘Secure income potential' or ‘High return potential’
• Diversifiers

When it comes to categorization by investment criteria, potential holdings will have to clearly fit into one of three investment categories: secure income, high return potential, and diversifiers.

Secure income indicates holdings that are judged to be likely to provide a more secure source of income even if they may not have as much upside potential as holdings in the ‘high return potential’ category. Canadian Solar Infrastructure, for example, had a stable long term dividend history at the time of investment, supported by a financial model based not on receiving merchant power prices but on receiving base rent for its assets related to a percentage of projected power generated, with the potential for performance-linked rent on top of this.

High return potential indicates holdings that are valued in such a way that we believe there is potential for greater returns, although they may or may not have a past track record of this. For example, Gore Street Energy Storage was supported by an investment thesis that posited that the value of its portfolio should rise substantially as its assets went through construction milestones, even though it had at the time of investment yet to pay a covered dividend. As such, we deemed that it had potential for high returns but has not yet demonstrated an ability to deliver secure income.

Diversifiers are holdings where we believe past or likely future return profiles clearly complements those of existing holdings. They may not offer high (or any) income, but they will be deemed likely to help preserve capital in the portfolio as a whole. Cadeler, for example, paid no dividend at the time of investment, but operated in a completely different part of the renewable energy value chain from other holdings in the portfolio.

Investment Analysis

Core holdings should demonstrate either an ability to generate a secure, stable income stream, or the potential for high total returns, grounded in income-generation potential. A potential core holding will be assessed on the basis of whether or not the anticipated yield indicates it should contribute to the portfolio meeting or exceeding its CPI-based yield target, and if any premium to NAV is deemed likely to pay for itself with near term income or is justified by alternative valuation.

For direct equity investment in companies that are not investment companies, different valuation methods will be employed depending on the nature of the company and the market opportunity that has been identified; these will generally be grounded in assessing the value of the company’s balance sheet or its anticipated future earnings with a view to gaining conviction about the company’s ability to sustain required dividend payments.

The core investment analysis process is grounded in close reading of prospectuses and analysis of financial statements to assess the likelihood of indicated yield being delivered, or if we would estimate a different yield. Where appropriate, this may be supported by valuation of underlying assets. Central to the fundamental analysis process is conducting regular meetings with company managements to support our analytical activities and to gauge conviction in the management teams. Similarly, we will conduct site visits where appropriate.

Diversifiers are not necessarily focused on income-generation. Instead, diversifiers should preserve the capital value of the Fund – especially under market conditions where the core holdings may do less well.

As such, a potential diversifier will be assessed on the basis of whether or not its price implies a high likelihood of capital preservation or appreciation, and on the basis of whether or not likely future return profiles will complement the return profiles of existing holdings. This can take the form both of a logical assessment of how it generates its returns (e.g. the place it occupies in the value chain of the industry within which it sits), and through conducting correlation analysis of its past returns relative to existing assets in the portfolio. 

Portfolio construction

The Fund takes a focused yet diversified approach. By focusing on diversified investment companies, we can reduce the number of top level holdings, allowing us to regularly meet with their management teams as well as increase the frequency with which we can review each holding – without compromising on diversification because each investment company will itself have a diversified portfolio of investments. The Fund currently has under 25 holdings, but we do not intend for the Fund to diverge from its focused yet diversified approach, and, as such, we do not anticipate holdings to go above 40.

The Fund will generally invest inflows and divest outflows as they occur, seeking to remain as close to fully invested as is practicable under various market conditions. The Fund has a focus on investment companies, which tend to be most liquid during times of capital raisings and around NAV announcements. As such, we may therefore at times allow cash balances to build up to allow participation in capital raising or to await more liquid times in the market, when we believe this will be most beneficial to our investors.

At the time of investment, no holding (with the potential exception of cash) will be more than 7% of the Fund. Otherwise, position sizes will reflect conviction, liquidity, and be further modified by portfolio modelling, which will be undertaken on an ongoing basis to target appropriate aggregate characteristics for varying market conditions, such as yield, valuation, beta, and diversification.

Alignment to Green Impact Infrastructure Framework

Alignment to the Green Impact Infrastructure Framework is required prior to an investment being selected for the Fund. The Green Impact Infrastructure Framework sets out six acceptable core investment themes, and the Fund Manager will assess against the framework to provide assurance the companies are providing appropriate solutions. This thematic alignment is reviewed by our SI Team to determine if they agree with this assessment. All orders are submitted and processed via Charles River. Only authorised personnel are permitted to carry out restricted functions related to generation and execution of market orders. All orders must first pass through Charles River compliance checks, which ensure adherence to a range of restrictions. For stocks that fail on ethical, or controversy grounds, Compliance and Operations are informed to ensure that there is a hard stop within the trading system (Charles River) to prevent breaches of the process.

Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies:

As a dedicated sustainable investment manager, all of EdenTree’s investment expertise and resources are directed towards sustainable investing. At the heart of EdenTree’s investment process is the close collaboration of its Sustainable Investment Team.

EdenTree’s Sustainable Investment Team comprises both its fund managers and its sustainability specialists. The individuals within these teams work side by side on stock selection, stewardship and thematic research. EdenTree thus employs a dual due diligence process, endeavoring to ensure robust risk management and positive sustainability outcomes. 

EdenTree’s activities are overseen by its Sustainable Investment Advisory Panel, which comprises industry and business experts appointed for their specialist knowledge. For investors, it’s an added layer of assurance that their money is being invested in companies that are operating in a sustainable way. 

Our Sustainability Specialists  

The dedicated sustainability component of our Sustainable Investment Team is made up of five sustainability specialists who oversee EdenTree’s sustainability research and stewardship activity. The team has oversight of how EdenTree assesses and integrates sustainability across all funds.

• Carlota Esguevillas, Head of Sustainable Investment - Carlota leads the sustainability team and has oversight of EdenTree’s sustainability and stewardship activities. She joined the firm in 2021, having previously worked for a leading sustainability consultancy advising global companies on their ESG strategies and disclosures. She holds a First-Class Honours BA in Geography from Oxford University, a master’s certificate with distinction in Business & Human Rights from Bergen University, and the Investment Management Certificate (IMC). She is also a member of the PA Future (formerly ESG Clarity) Committee, the IA’s Sustainability & Responsible Investment Committee, winner of Investment Week’s Rising Star Sustainable Investment Champion of the Year 2024 and highly commended Sustainable & ESG Woman of the Year at Investment Week’s Women in Investment Awards 2025.
• Hayley Grafton, Senior Sustainable Investment Analyst - Hayley Leads on the firm's approach to corporate governance and proxy voting. Hayley joined EdenTree in 2024 and leads the firm’s corporate governance approach and proxy voting activity. She is also responsible for EdenTree’s long-term engagement on financial inclusion in the UK. Hayley holds the Investment Management Certificate and is a student member of the Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland (CGIUKI), through which she is completing the Chartered Governance Qualifying Programme. Before joining EdenTree, she worked at Mercer as a Sustainable Investment Specialist, where she focused on the firm’s stewardship approach and activity across portfolio funds.
• Cordelia Dower-Tylee, Senior Sustainable Investment Analyst- Cordelia joined EdenTree in 2022 and leads the firm’s engagement strategy, overseeing activity across the team’s priority themes. She also leads EdenTree’s environmental work, with an emphasis on water, and supports the company’s work on governance. She holds the Investment Management Certificate, an MA in History from the University of Edinburgh, and a Certificate in Sustainable Finance from the University of Cambridge. She is also a member of the UKSIF Future Leaders Cohort and the PRI Nature Reference Group. Prior to joining EdenTree, Cordelia worked with the International Water Management Institute and in a green-focused corporate advisory firm.
• Aaron Cox, Impact Strategist - Aaron Leads the firm’s public market impact strategy across equities, listed infrastructure, and fixed income. He joined EdenTree in June 2022 and is an Impact Strategist within the Sustainability Team. Prior to joining EdenTree, Aaron had roles at First State Investments (now First Sentier), Jupiter and Majedie as a writer and researcher with a focus on ESG and sustainable investing. He started his career as a derivatives broker in Sydney. Aaron has a BA in English from the University of New South Wales, Post Grad Certificate in Environmental Economics from SOAS and Certificate in Sustainable Investing from Harvard Business School. He is currently undertaking a post graduate research project at Birmingham University on computational linguistic methods to identify sustainability stretch goal tensions and the risk of greenwashing and corporate misbehaviour.
• Ross Albany-Ward, Sustainable Investment Analyst - Ross joined EdenTree in 2025, and is a Sustainable Investment Analyst on the Sustainability Team and leads EdenTree’s work on climate strategy. Working across the firm’s sustainability research and stewardship activities, he leads EdenTree’s work on climate, including carbon footprinting the funds. Prior to joining EdenTree, Ross worked in the Sustainable Investment team at CCLA, assessing companies and supporting stewardship activities. Ross has a First-Class Honours degree in Geography from Nottingham University, completing his dissertation on sustainable finance and corporate sustainability.

The team leverages both proprietary and third-party research applies value orientated screens, attends conferences and often meets with company management. The investment research undertaken provides the foundations for the lead fund manager to decide whether it is appropriate to include the stock in the overall portfolio.

Proprietary analysis sits at the core of our investment process at EdenTree. For our sustainability analysis we believe a qualitative approach is needed to capture the nuances and hence we choose to rely on in-depth analyst research, rather than third-party ratings, to form an opinion on suitability. To complete the assessment, the analyst utilises a variety of sources, including: Newsflow, annual and sustainability reports, policies, industry publications and websites, NGO research, investor databases, benchmark initiatives, and government and academic research. As mentioned above, EdenTree also has access to several third-party research providers, including Bloomberg, Sustainalytics, ISS ESG, and Glass Lewis, which are used to support the analyst assessment.

Partnerships

We are members or signatories to several industry partnerships involving the sustainable investment community. Ultimately, membership of organisations such as the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) affords specific opportunity to work with like-minded global investors on material issues. The SI Team oversee periodic review of our involvement in these industry partnerships and collaborative initiatives, particularly assessing effectiveness, progress made and alignment with our engagement priorities. Over the period, our partnerships included:

Collaborative engagement memberships

Most engagement is conducted by EdenTree directly. However, we seek to collaborate positively with like minded investors wherever possible or as part of collaborative industry initiatives. Detailed below is a list of the initiatives we were involved in, and in what capacity, over the period. Further detail and updates on our involvement in these collaborations are shared in our quarterly reports.

EdenTree believes these partnerships signals their commitment to having an active and positive role in the investment community. Collaborations are critical to driving change, whilst learning from expert sources allows them to provide more for their clients.

EdenTree also sits on UKSIF’s Analyst Committee, which advises on the development of UKSIF’s knowledge sharing programme on evolving sustainability issues. They also sit on the PRI’s Circular Economy Reference Group, which explores how investors can better integrate the principles of a circular economy into investment processes. EdenTree’s CIO, Charlie Thomas, sits on the IA’s Sustainability and Responsible Investment Committee.

EdenTree Sustainable Investment Advisory Panel

The EdenTree Sustainable Investment Advisory Panel is an external advisory panel of seven senior industry practitioners with expertise in the field of sustainable investment. The Sustainable Investment Advisory Panel (“the Panel”) has independent oversight over the Sustainability Team, led by Carlota Esguevillas, Head of Sustainable Investment. The Panel meets three times each year to provide oversight to EdenTree’s proprietary sustainable investment process (the “EdenTree Standard” edentree-identifying-sustainable-companies.pdf) and to discuss the latest trends and developments in sustainable investment and research. The purpose of the Panel is to: 

• Ensure that EdenTree’s range of funds meet the stated sustainable aims and objectives. 
• Provide advice in the formulation of policy in the light of changing social and sustainability issues.
• Advise on emerging issues or topics relevant to EdenTree’s sustainable investment criteria. 
• Provide advice and guidance on individual companies or sectors, and engagement work with regards to sustainable and social topics.

EdenTree Sustainable Investment Advisory Panel Members: 

• Will Oulton, Panel Chair - Will Oulton is the Chair of the European Sustainable Investment Forum (Eurosif), a Non-Exec Director and Board Champion for Ocean Recovery at the UK based Marine Conservation Society, and Chair of King Charles III’s Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) Expert Panel. Prior to these positions he was for over a decade the Global Head of Responsible Investment at global asset manager First Sentier Investors, where he led the delivery of an award winning RI strategy for the business. He was also the Head of Responsible Investment for EMEA at Mercer Investments and the Director of Responsible Investment at FTSE, leading the ongoing management and development of FTSE’s responsible investment services.
• Paul Simpson OBE, Strategic Advisor - Paul is an advisor to organisations focussed on accelerating the transition to a net zero economy. He pioneered climate and environmental disclosure globally having co-founded CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) in 2001 and spent 12 years as the CEO until 2022. Paul received an OBE for services to tackling climate change in the 2022 Honours List. He initiated the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) in 2014 and has held board positions with SBTi, We Mean Business, EIRIS, The Investor Agenda and the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (now part of the International Sustainability Standards Board).
• Verity Mitchell, Independent Consultant - Verity Mitchell is UK Analyst and editor of What's Next for UK Water for Global Water Intelligence magazine. Previously she was Director, Utilities for HSBC Global Research. Her equity coverage included Pennon, Severn Trent and United Utilities in the UK; Veolia in France; and American Water and Essential Utilities in the US, together with Centrica, Drax, National Grid, SSE and Biffa. She covered most of the larger UK water companies before they were taken private. She has been involved in bringing a number of global water and waste management companies to the listed equity markets in the UK, US and Middle East. Previously she worked in project finance for HSBC on a number of infrastructure mandates including water projects. She began her career at what is now the Department of Business and Trade.
• Annette Fergusson, Independent Consultant - Annette is an independent consultant with over 25 years of experience working on sustainability and business and human rights, with a particular focus on the telecoms and technology sectors. She advises companies, industry associations and non-governmental organisations on a wide range of human rights issues including digital rights, children’s rights and labour standards. Annette was previously Vodafone Group’s Head of Sustainable Business and for over 10 years led the company’s human rights programme. From 2016 to 2018, she was a member of the Board of the multi-stakeholder Global Network Initiative.
• Julian Parrott, Client Member, Ethical Futures - Julian Parrott is an independent financial planner specialising in ethical and sustainable investment advice. Julian has over 25 years’ experience in financial services, encompassing building society management, life assurance sales and financial planning & advice. He is the founding partner of the Ethical Futures LLP and holds the ISO 22222 standard in financial planning. Julian is active in promoting ethical investment to the public and adviser community. He has served on the board of UKSIF & Ethical Investment Association. He is a Director of the Ethical Finance Hub project as well as other consultancy roles. Julian is a fellow of the RSA.
• Mike Barry, Former Director of Sustainable Business - Until recently, Mike was Director of Sustainable Business at Marks & Spencer, spearheading its ground-breaking Plan A sustainability programme. He also co-chaired the Consumer Goods Forum’s sustainability work, bringing together the world’s largest retailers and fast moving consumer goods brands to work on issues such as deforestation, plastics and forced labour. He is a Senior Associate at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.
• Sue Round, Chair, EdenTree Investment Management - Following more than 40 years in investment management, Sue retired in 2022. Prior to retirement she had developed and led EdenTree and is currently Chair of EdenTree Investment Management.

Sue joined what was then Ecclesiastical Investment Management in 1984 and as a senior fund manager, launched one of the first responsible (ethical) retail funds in 1988. She went to develop and reposition a range of funds to integrate environmental, social and governance into the investment process. Prior to retirement, Sue was a member of FCA Smaller Business Practitioners Panel and an advocate for improvements across the broader investment industry to promote greater clarity of approach to avoid “greenwash “ to clients. Prior to joining Ecclesiastical, Sue spent five years at Philip Hill, the Investment Trust specialist management house.

Dialshifter

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

Progressing towards our goals is driven by our Climate Change Strategy. It is based on four pillars where we believe there is both a need for action and where we can make a difference. The four pillars – Decarbonise, Accelerate, Collaborate and Embody – each address a different part of the low carbon transition, targeting the areas where investors have the biggest role to play.

Please refer to the Climate Stewardship Report 2024/25 for more details.

SDR Labelling:

Sustainability Impact label

SDR Literature:

• Sustainability Disclosure