ESG spotlight: A roundup of the latest news on environmental, social and governance initiatives, including Nest and Cushon looking to explore forestry investments, and the Greater Manchester Pension Fund committing to sustainable infrastructure.
Nest and Cushon explore forestry investments
The £24bn National Employment Savings Trust and the £1.7bn Cushon pension scheme are inviting asset managers to share perspectives on how they can invest in natural capital, initially focusing on forestry. The master trusts believe forestry is an asset class on the rise, with a negative or low correlation to equity and bond indices, making the asset class more attractive given the recent market volatility. Nest and Cushon want managers to discuss the best ways to implement forestry into their portfolios, from both a cost and return perspective as well as taking into account ESG considerations.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
Greater Manchester fund invests in sustainable infrastructure
The circa £28.2bn Greater Manchester Pension Fund has committed a further £100mn into Gresham House’s sustainable infrastructure strategy. This vehicle helps accelerate the deployment of solutions that address key environmental and societal challenges in the North West of England, and support levelling up throughout the UK. Following the investment, the scheme will gain greater exposure to innovative solutions and technologies, including vertical farming, biodiversity net gain credits, and low-carbon biofuel production in the North West and beyond, it said.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
Church of England board launches new mining initiative
The £3.7bn Church of England Pensions Board has announced a new independent global tailings management institute in a bid to drive mining industry safety standards. The Church of England board (representing the Principles for Responsible Investment) and the UN Environment Programme announced the launch of the institute at an investor summit on mining hosted by the London Stock Exchange, on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the Brumadinho tailings dam disaster, which resulted in the deaths of 270 people. The institute’s core function is to oversee the implementation of, and conformance with, the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
