Sustainable investing, fertile ground for Nanuk

From

Eric Siegloff

Resource constraints and environmental challenges like climate change, pollution and water scarcity are real. Global governments have been increasingly focussed on addressing these challenges, for example China with its tighter regulations around fossil fuels to crackdown on CO2 emissions and its use of subsidies to support its now dominant position in the global electric-vehicle and solar panel industries.

Global businesses have similarly responded by adapting their business models and business practices, as in the renewable energy industry but also in a host of areas such as precision farming, recycling, packaging, industrial automation and aerospace.

“These areas provide the fertile ground upon which our sustainably themed investments are based,” said Eric Siegloff, CEO of Nanuk Asset Management. The asset manager’s New World Fund is wholly focussed on investing in listed global companies contributing to or benefitting from the broad themes, opportunities and risks associated with environmental sustainability and resource efficiency.

Nanuk has been vocal in its belief that a “sustainability revolution” has commenced, noting that sustainable technologies and practices are reaching economic viability which will ultimately supplant existing unsustainable business activities. Nanuk is not alone: a recent article written by Al Gore and David Blood[1] also placed emphasis to the technology, product innovation and resource-use efficiency themes underpinning the sustainability revolution.

Nanuk’s sustainably themed investment approach sits alongside other responsible and sustainable investment approaches such as ESG integration, screening, corporate engagement and impact investing. Total responsibly & sustainably managed assets was estimated at US$23 trillion globally in 2016 (GSIA[2]) – a dollar amount numerically equivalent to the aggregate market capitalisation of the S&P 500 index right now.

“The evidence is that governments, business, asset owners and asset managers globally are embracing the need for more sustainable investments, a positive trend which will further build in the years ahead”, said Mr Siegloff.

Sources:
[1] http://www.wired.co.uk/article/al-gore-sustainability-generation-investment-management-interview
[2] http://www.gsi-alliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/GSIR_Review2016.F.pdf

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