Building a robust sustainable investment strategy

We can help you build or optimize a sustainable investment strategy that aims to help you navigate tomorrow's challenges and regulatory changes. We look at progress against peers, identify potential changes to asset allocation and assess your portfolio's capacity to transition. We can incorporate ESG, DEI, climate and impact considerations. Our research, tools, advice and solutions are designed to help you manage your risk profile while seeking favorable returns along the way.

Why a sustainable investment strategy is critical

Governments are establishing sustainable investing policies and regulations. Investors are adopting “sustainable development goals”. Donors and beneficiaries are demanding that investors take real action to stop polluting, grow the economy sustainably and protect the vulnerable. Having a sustainable investment strategy is no longer a “nice-to-have”, it’s an imperative for all investors, of all sizes around the world. 

Investing sustainably – for the future – goes beyond just incorporating environmental, social and governance considerations. It also involves paying attention to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) within managers and strategies, and striking a balance between doing the right thing and delivering on investment commitments, which is otherwise known as impact-investing.

Our sustainable investment declaration outlines our approach and commitment to helping you make a positive sustainable impact while aiming to generate favorable returns.

Questions to ask when defining your approach: 

  • Where am I on my sustainability journey?
  • Where are asset managers on their journey?
  • What practical changes can I make today?
  • How can I ensure that DEI is a priority for managers and in strategies?
  • How do I strike an optimal balance between the greater good and meeting my financial objectives?

Considerations when building your sustainable investment strategy

Tools to help you amplify your sustainable investment strategy

Our commitment to help make a difference

Pursuing net-zero by 2050

Sustainability is at the center of our investment approach and our firm as a whole. We have committed to a target of net-zero absolute carbon emissions by 2050 across the majority of our funds. We expect to reduce absolute portfolio carbon emissions by 45% from 2019 baseline levels by 2030. Here, Mark McNulty, our International Head of Clients, Mercer Investment Solutions, explains more. 

We have identified clear goals and accountability

  • By 2030, we expect to reduce absolute emissions by 45% from the 2019 baseline levels.
  • By 2050, we have committed to hit net-zero absolute carbon emissions for our UK, European, Australian, New Zealand and Asian clients with discretionary portfolios and for most of our multi-asset funds domiciled in Ireland.   
  • We will produce annual progress reports on absolute emissions, alongside carbon intensity reports.

Sustainable investment solutions for institutional investors

We can work with you to build and execute your sustainable investment strategy, helping you meet your overall sustainability objectives. As a trusted advisor and OCIO provider we have access to a universe of managers, asset classes and opportunities. We can evaluate your portfolio through multiple lenses, aiming to ensure every investment decision you make considers the most pressing global themes like climate change.
  • Responsible Investment Total Evaluation (RITE)

    This tool provides an evaluation across your beliefs, policies, processes and portfolio. It shows you how you’re doing on a scale from A++ to C and compares you to your peers. It can also monitor your improvement over time.
  • Sustainable investment pathway

    This advice and implementation framework provides you with the foundation for strong governance and portfolio implementation, helping you take action on your sustainable investment journey.
  • Analytics for Climate Transition (ACT)

    This framework assesses a vast range of data to rank the transition capacity of listed companies to help you position your portfolios for a carbon-free future.
  • Investing for impact

    We can help you build a robust impact investing strategy designed to accelerate real-change and whilst helping you pursue stronger returns for your portfolios.
  • Integrating DEI

    We can help you define and build a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) investment strategy that seeks to deliver positive change and stronger portfolio outcomes.
  • Investment research

    Access the latest strategic investment research on MercerInsight Community and our forward-looking asset manager research on MercerInsight to help guide your investment decisions.

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Leverage our breadth and depth

We have more than 20 years of experience helping clients invest sustainably and finding investment opportunities to balance good returns with positive change. We launched our proprietary ESG ratings platform for sustainable investments in 2008, covering over 4,000 strategies. We have built a suite of frameworks and tools to help you identify optimum sustainable investments and enhance your sustainable portfolio construction.

Awards

Investment consultant of the year 2023

Mercer has been recognized as the investment consultant of the year by Environmental Finance for pioneering sustainable investment and assisting more than 25 institutional investors around the globe to better assess their exposures to climate transition risks. 

With over 20 years of experience helping clients invest sustainably, we can seek to help you identify the right investment opportunities to balance good returns with positive change. We launched our proprietary ESG ratings platform for sustainable investments in 2008, covering over 4,000 strategies. Since then we have built a suite of frameworks and tools designed to help you identify optimum sustainable investments and enhance your sustainable portfolio construction.

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    Wherever you are on your sustainable investment journey, we can help.

    Speak with one of our team today

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