In just three years the number of major global investors signing up to the UN-backed 'Principles for Responsible Investment' Initiative (PRI) has soared from 50 to over 600, representing US$18 trillion of assets and 37 countries. It is a clear recognition by mainstream capital markets of the importance of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) issues to investment processes.
Designed to be voluntary and aspirational, the PRI provide investors with a high-level framework for integrating ESG issues into investment decisions. With insights from Canadian and international signatories on their experiences and identified best practices to-date, participants learnt of how they can join the PRI signatory community and benefit from the tools provided by the PRI. |
*Denotes PRI Board Member
^ Denotes the presentation was given in French. Bilingual powerpoints are available for all sessions. |
| Opening remarks: Moving further into the mainstream |
- The rise of responsible investment (RI) in Canada
- How global investors benefit from PRI participation
- How are PRI signatories doing? Results of the Report on Progress, 2009.
- How do Canadian signatories compare with global peers?
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James Gifford, Executive Director, PRI |
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Jane Ambachtsheer, National Partner and Global Head of Responsible Investment, Mercer |
| Session I: Translating RI commitments into practice |
- How are mainstream asset owners putting RI commitments into practice? Tips on how to assess ESG-related risks and opportunities.
- What does being a PRI signatory mean?
- How PRI signatories incorporate ESG criteria into asset manager RFPs and evaluate managers.
- How are leading investors integrating ESG in fixed income, private equity, infrastructure and property asset classes? What help is out there?
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Brigid Barnett, Manager, Responsible Investing, CPP Investment Board |
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Antoine de Salins*^, Executive Director, Fonds de réserve pour les retraites (FRR) |
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David Atkin*, CEO, Construction & Building Industry Superannuation Fund (Cbus) |
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Q&A |
| Session II: RI approaches and how they are managed |
- How are responsible investors raising standards of ESG performance in companies they own?
- RI as part of rigorous risk management practice. How current signatories do it.
- The Principles as a framework for directing, executing and reporting your approach to RI
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Ginette Depelteau^, Senior Vice-President, Policies and Compliance, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec |
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Max Zehrt, Sustainability Analyst, TD Asset Management |
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Bertrand Millot, CIO, Cordiant Capital |
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Q&A |
| Session III: The Principles in action |
- How are the Principles being applied as risk management tools in the case of metals and mining?
- How can shareholder engagement be used as a risk management tool? How can investors leverage the PRI Clearinghouse for more effective shareholder engagements?
- Responsible investment for small funds: PRI tools for the resource-constrained.
- Addressing present and future climate change risks and opportunities in your portfolio.
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Stephen Kibsey, Senior Portfolio Manager, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec |
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Daniel Simard*^, General Coordinator, Comité syndical national de retraite Batirente |
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Wolfgang Engshuber*, President, Corporate Centres, Munich Re America |
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Q&A |
| Session IV: Taking up the responsible investment challenge |
- From consideration of RI to implementation: Strategies for Canadian pension plans
- ESG integration – a legal requirement?
- PRI growth to 2014, what resources can signatories look forward to benefiting from?
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Martin Grosskopf, Member, UNEP FI Asset Management Working Group and Associate Portfolio Manager and Manager of Sustainability Research, Acuity Investment Management |
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Eugene Ellmen, Executive Director, Social Investment Organization
Jordan Berger, Principal, Head of Responsible Investment, Canada, Mercer
New SIO Report Released: Best Practices in Responsible Investment for Canadian Pension Funds |
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Jerome Tagger, COO, PRI |
Other recent PRI news
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Assessment results show positive progress:
More signatories are meeting the challenges of PRI implementation,
according to this yearès Report on Progress, 2009. The report features
the aggregated Assessment results of over 270 signatories, with
headline figures showing a 25% rise in the number of asset owners
putting RI elements into external manager contracts.
Read Report on Progress, 2009
Browse publicly available signatory responses
Fiduciary II: The UNEP FI Asset Management Working Group launched the much-awaited
sequel to its landmark 2005 "Freshfields Report" this month. The
document aims to provide a legal roadmap for fiduciaries looking for
concrete steps to operationalize their commitment to responsible
investment. It raised eyebrows for arguing that investment managers and
consultants may well have a legal duty to proactively raise ESG issues
with their clients.
Read the report
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