Sustainable investment

The action or process of purchasing assets that demonstrate consideration and commitment to viable long-term environmental, social and economic factors with the aim of creating wealth or financial gain.

Sustainable investment is a choice. It is a conscious decision to look beyond near-term profit and engage with the future. It is not a new concept. But investors now have greater access to information and are becoming more sophisticated and discerning. Companies must now be more transparent and accountable.

“We ought not to gain money at the expense of life, nor at the expense of our health.” John Wesley c.1780

CONCEPT

Sustainable investment has existed for centuries, but it has historically been treated as a niche interest. As we move beyond the post-industrial era to a more interconnected and fluid world, sustainability is moving into the mainstream.

Search term

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Source: Google Trends 1800 - 2016

corporate governance (ESG) factors. The U.K. Environmental Agency conducted a review of environmental disclosures by UK listed companies and concluded there was a positive correlation between greater disclosure and underlying company performance.

Companies face significant economic, social and environmental challenges. Globalisation, digitisation and pressure on finite natural resources are all transformational business risks. The post-­industrial business model no longer seems viable.

Sweating assets (human, natural or manufactured) with economies of scale, to bring increased profits through reduced production costs is limited and unsustainable.

Business models should be dynamic, interlinking-relationships, open resource

and information flows. This would in­-turn, facilitate sustainability by improving innovation, collaboration and the resilience required to adapt and succeed.

Investors can now analyse listed companies based on environmental, social and

There is a lack of reporting uniformity, but companies understand the need for disclosures and are embracing corporate transparency.

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Companies face significant economic, social and environmental challenges. Globalisation, digitisation and pressure on finite natural resources are all transformational business risks. The post-­industrial business model no longer seems viable.

Sweating assets (human, natural or manufactured) with economies of scale, to bring increased profits through reduced production costs is limited and unsustainable.

Business models should be dynamic, interlinking-relationships, open resource and information flows. This would in­-turn, facilitate sustainability by improving innovation, collaboration and the resilience required to adapt and succeed.

Investors can now analyse listed companies based on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) factors. The U.K. Environmental Agency conducted a review of environmental disclosures by UK listed companies and concluded there was a positive correlation between greater disclosure and underlying company performance.

There is a lack of reporting uniformity, but companies understand the need for disclosures and are embracing corporate transparency.

CRITERIA

Sustainix acknowledges fully the contributions of both commercial and NGO providers in creating fair and objective baseline comparisons of ESG metrics for each segment in isolation and in aggregate.

The data is segmented into three main categories – environmental, social and corporate governance – according to industry standard data aggregations.

The model covers over 1,600 listed companies in the US, UK and Europe.

All the data is quantitative. There are no subjective overlays.

For consistency, no bias is employed. Companies are not penalised or omitted because of supposed bad practice or operation in industry deemed unsustainable.

Data is wholly dependent on company disclosures. The quality and depth of disclosures varies significantly between sector, geographic region and market capitalisation.

Benchmarking across ESG varies by segment. Environmental disclosures are global industry specific whereas social and corporate governance are benchmarked by region.

The ratings aim to provide a robust framework and reference point from which to compare listed companies against their peers.

The ratings are only as strong as the data they are based on. Sustainix makes no claims to the contrary, but rather has made every effort to ensure the data is as robust as practicably possible.

emissions
resource use
innovation

Environmental

shareholders
management
CSR strategy

Governance

Viable

GLOBAL 100

THE TOP 100 SUSTAINABLE LISTED COMPANIES

Corporate Knights, a respected Canadian media company, compiles a list of the top 100 sustainable listed – companies.

Corporate Knights use a composite of 14 KPIs across environmental, social and corporate governance.

The rankings are updated annually and presented at Davos

Sector Key

Industrials

Consumer Staples

Hardware

Consumer Discretionary

Utilities

Healthcare

Communications

Technology

Materials

Financials

Energy

Sustainix Portfolio Model

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WHAT DO YOU THINK?

HAVE YOU HEARD OF TRASE?

Trase is a partnership between the Stockholm Environment Institute and Global Canopy Programme.

It transforms our understanding of how companies and governments, involved in the trade of agricultural commodities, are linked to impacts and opportunities for more sustainable production.

ABOUT US

Sustainix is a research services business with expertise in sustainable investment research and analytics. We operate as an unbiased intermediary between companies, data providers and investors highlighting the data necessary to better assess and price sustainability related investment risks and opportunities. Our tools and services improve transparency in sustainability reporting making Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) disclosures more available, consistent and reliable.

MISSION

Our mission is to remove the disconnect between corporate ESG reporting and investor demands, facilitating greater uniformity and confidence in sustainability analysis.

VISION

We believe long-term corporate sustainability should be as important as short-term financial analysis and be central to investors’ decision-making process.

Data Sources

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