Sustainable Themes
Resilience portfolios are managed in alignment with the Paris Agreement, the Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN SDGs. We invest into 7 interwoven equity themes focused on sustainable prosperity.
Climate Solutions
Mitigation, Adaptation & Resilience, Energy Transition
When the Paris Agreement was signed on the 12th December 2015 by 196 countries 2030 seemed a long way into the future. We are now perilously close to that date.
There has been a significant increase in renewables and industries are decarbonising, however the Keeling Curve continues to climb ever higher, with the level of atmospheric carbon dioxide having reached 425 parts per million in March 2024 (in 2015 we were hovering around 400ppm).
Mitigation is starting to have an effect with wind and solar now mature investible sectors, the International Energy Agency estimates that without renewables the increase in global emissions over the past 5 years would have been three times larger, however global emissions still increased by 410 million tonnes (1.1%) in 2023. We are also seeing increased investment into adaption, with the need now, more than ever, to protect assets from the impact of climate change. However there is a clear and increasing adaptation financing gap, particularly in developing economies.
Our Climate Solutions are focused on both Mitigation and Adaptation, we have long term conviction in the Energy Transition and see increasing opportunities to deploy capital to assets that are aligned to the Paris Agreement.
Biodiversity Leaders
Nature-based Solutions, Restoration & Regeneration
Biodiversity is as important as Climate, the two are inextricably linked, with positive feedback loops accelerating negative impacts. However, from an investment perspective Biodiversity is at least 5 years behind.
The Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted in 2022 is nature’s equivalent to the Paris Agreement and forms the basis of being able to assessing the impact of loss and damage caused by humanity. We can now measure the impact that companies have on nature in a similar way to assessing their Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and there are an increasing number of large multi-nationals that have committed to halting and reversing biodiversity loss.
With the investable universe expanding we are at the forefront of allocating capital to assets that clearly demonstrate that their businesses are managed in harmony with nature.
As an sustainable investment manager based in an UNESCO Biosphere we are acutely aware of how fragile and important biodiversity is and have committed to setting aside 10% of our portfolio management fees for direct conservation and restoration of habitats on the Isle of Man.
Sustainable Consumption
Circular Economy, Resource Efficiency, Waste & Water Management
Capitalism has been built on consumption. We extract, use and waste materials taken from the earth in a linear fashion. We know that resources are finite and that the vast majority of people are now consciously practicing a more sustainable lifestyle at home, recycling, reusing and reducing their waste materials. Corporates too have shifted towards a circular economic model, however there is still a vast amount of inefficiency in the way economies manage resources.
We often encounter clients that feel that their efforts are a drop in the ocean, our response is that the most powerful impact they can have is through directing their capital to assets that are aligned with their sustainability preferences.
Our Sustainable Consumption theme invests across sub-themes covering Waste Management, Water Management, Smart Materials and assets that are aligned to circular economy principles. We have conviction that economic growth can be decoupled from the use of natural resources.
Sustainable Agriculture
Precision Farming, Ag-tech, Agroforestry, Soil & Seed Health
Land use and nature loss has, to a large extent, been driven by demographics and consumer habits. As the global population has grown our agricultural practices have become industrialised on a vast scale.
The agricultural sector is dominated by an oligopoly of companies that control the supply of soft commodities and the majority of farms are still privately owned. Farming practices have also intensively relied upon chemicals to enhance yields and prevent disease.
Our Sustainable Agriculture theme invests in companies along the value-chain that are focused on agricultural technology, land management, precision farming, soil and seed health, water management and bio-based crop protection.
The Sustainable Agriculture theme is intrinsically linked with our Just Transition and Sustainable Impact themes, companies we invest in need to be able to demonstrate what they are doing to ensure living wages for small-scale farmers as well as making a positive impact from community perspective.
We also invest in listed farmland assets that directly own portfolios of smaller permanent agricultural crops and sustainably managed row crops. We believe that sustainable agriculture is a vital component to ensuring food security and biodiversity restoration.
Sustainable Innovation
Gamechangers, Future-proofers, NextGen
Throughout all of human history, innovation, and in particular the invention and leveraging of new technology, has been the biggest lever to catalyse societal shifts. These shifts are sometimes for better, sometimes for worse, and always come with unforeseen and disruptive consequences. This disruption unlocks new opportunities accompanied with new challenges.
The anthropogenic problems we face in the world today simply will not be solved without innovation, the invention and leveraging of new technology, and wise management of the resultant disruption.
Due to the exponential nature of innovation and technology, investment into successful disruptors at the right moment, enabling the solving of previously unsolvable problems, can produce equally attractive financial returns for long term investors.
To us Sustainable Innovation means both that the innovation we invest in addresses the biggest challenges of this era, and also that the resultant disruption is well governed such that the change is managed in an environmentally and socially responsible way. In other words, Sustainable Innovation done in a sustainable way to create sustainable prosperity.
We invest in game changers across sectors. We look for companies that consistently reinvest in research and development, and continuous improvement, work hard on competitiveness and efficiency, invent or leverage scientific breakthroughs that increase sustainable prosperity, and those that are building discrete and unique pools of valuable data.
Just Transition
Emerging Market Impact
The cost of two centuries of industrialisation and the legacy of extracting resources has caused immeasurable damage to communities least able to afford to adapt to the climate and biodiversity crisis.
The Loss and Damage Fund agreed at COP28, is long over due and far smaller than required, however it is a line in the sand and recognition that developed economies bear a financial responsibility to deploy sustainable investment where it is most needed.
As investment managers we look to emerging markets for growth, over the past 3 decades this has been driven by China, now an established leader in many sustainable technologies. Today, some of the most innovative and fast growing sustainable companies can be found in emerging economies from India to Brazil.
Many US and European listed companies have supply chains spanning emerging markets, a significant part of our research and analysis within our sustainability committee is dedicated to ensuring that companies are having a net positive social impact across jurisdictions.
For Resilience a Just Transition goes beyond Climate, we invest to reduce food, energy and economic inequalities. It is in our hands to drive positive change.
Sustainable Impact
Health & Well-being, Equality & Education
Measuring the sustainable and positive impact of the investments we make is as important as delivering financial returns. Our sustainability committee has the power to veto investment decisions that fail to meet the 10 principles of the UN Global Compact.
Through our collaboration with Mainstreet Partners we measure the alignment of our investments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Our Resilient strategies have a high sustainability threshold with a minimum 80% exposure to assets that clearly demonstrate sustainability objectives.
Whilst many of our themes are expressed through our equity allocations it is within fixed income assets that the greatest sustainable impact can be made. The nature of Green Bonds and Sustainability-linked Bonds provides a direct route to fund and generate an income from both environmental and social projects with a high degree of measurability and transparency.
We also recognise the value and importance of education in addressing societal challenges and providing a pathway to generating wealth.
Sustainable prosperity means reducing inequalities and collaboratively growing a resilient society that is living and consuming within our planetary boundaries.
SDG Alignment
WHAT MATTERS TO YOU MOST
Resilience assesses client sustainability preferences alongside investment objectives and risk profile aligning preferences with the Resilient themes and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Contact Us
START YOUR RESILIENT JOURNEY
Our team of resilient investment professionals would be delighted to hear from you, whether you are an ardent environmentalist, a social impact champion, a trustee or professional wanting to understand how the nature of fiduciary duty is changing or simply out of curiosity.
Our shared knowledge and experience tells us that portfolios can be managed sustainably and that in doing so risks can be mitigated, returns can be generated and wealth can be used to make a meaningful positive impact.
If you’d like to take a first step we would be pleased to conduct a sample carbon review on your existing portfolio.
