EUR3.6tn investor coalition launches to bring about a 'just transition' to a low-carbon future

Submitted By Karin Wasteson | 30/06/2021 - 11:12am -

Finance for Tomorrow has announced the launch of Investors for a Just Transition, a global investor engagement coalition focused on promoting a socially acceptable environmental transition to greener low-carbon economies.

Through this platform, investors will work with different stakeholders to define a common strategy and specific engagement objectives, said the Paris-based organisation.

Bringing together asset managers and asset owners of the French financial ecosystem, the coalition currently represents 3.6 trillion euros, and its founding members include Amundi, Aviva France, AXA & AXA Investment Managers, Caisse des Dépôts, CNP Assurances, CPR Asset Management, Eiffel, ERAFP, La Banque Postale Asset Management, ODDO BHF Asset Management, Rothschild & Co Asset Management Europe, and SCOR Investment Partners.

With the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP26, to be held in a context marked by the social and economic fallout from the Covid-19 crisis, the concept of the just transition has emerged as a major factor of the global fight against climate change. It’s the 26th United Nations Climate Change conference, and is scheduled to be held in Glasgow from 31 October to 12 November 2021.

Five years on from the Paris Agreement, the French financial ecosystem remains a leading sustainable and green finance hub in Europe. According to Jean-Jacques Barbéris, vice-president of Finance for Tomorrow, the financial sector has a role to play by fully integrating the social dimension of moving towards greener economies in their financing policies.

“The decision to create the first investor coalition for a just transition stems from several observations. First of all, the just transition is a necessary condition for implementing the Paris Agreement. Our climate objectives can and will only be reached if we ensure that every one of society’s stakeholders is included in the process,” said Barbéris.

Like this article? Sign up to our free newsletter Related Topics ESG & Responsible Investing