With Earth Day just a few weeks away, this week’s chart considers the impact of climate change on investment policies. ESG research provider Robeco released its 2021 Global Climate Survey this week, surveying over 300 institutional and wholesale investors in Europe, North America, and Asia Pacific. The intent is to understand how climate change is affecting all investor types, not solely the largest, with hopes of painting a picture of how climate change factors into investment decisions, today relative to both historical and future considerations.
Looking at the report, Robeco fielded responses from insurance companies, pension funds, private banks, fund-of-funds, advisory firms, wirehouse broker/dealers, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations, and family offices, totalling to $23.4 trillion in Assets Under Management (AUM).
Per the chart below from their survey, it is clear that investment policies are changing significantly to include environmental risk mitigation in their portfolios. Looking at the data, we see that 86% of investors say that, in the next two years, climate change will be at the center of, or a significant factor in, their investment policy . This is up from a total of 73% that say climate change plays a role in their investment policies today, and 33% that said it did two years ago.
This chart above, coupled with market data, demonstrates that environmental finance is finally becoming mainstream. Breaking down the demand across the finance landscape:
It is clear from the data that demand is driving new forms of financing with climate change at the center, and from the chart above, it is clear investors are taking notice too.
If you are interested in supporting our mission, we are happy to discuss data needs, index licensing, and other ways we can partner. Please reach out to our Director of Business Development, Charlie Mahoney, at cmahoney@justcapital.com to discuss how we can create a more JUST economy together.
