Global climate change poses serious and growing threats to the world’s people, ecosystems and economy. To avoid catastrophic climate change impacts and to achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting average global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, the world needs to increase annual clean energy investments by at least $1 trillion per year, and double such investments by 2020 from 2012 levels. Investing in climate solutions can help investors mitigate the systemic risks of climate change, hedge against risks to their carbon intensive investments, and provide opportunities for diversification and strong returns as the world transitions to a low carbon, clean energy economy.
Such investments can include renewable energy, energy efficient technologies, green buildings, green bonds and sustainable infrastructure, across asset classes. The opportunity set of low carbon and clean energy investment products and strategies is growing, as is investor interest in this space. This initiative aims to accelerate the flow of investment capital to climate solutions, and to build leadership among mission- and impact-focused investors who are seeking competitive returns along with positive climate impacts.
Co-Led by Ceres, the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, and the Intentional Endowments Network, the Climate Solutions Investment Initiative (CSII) works with asset owners to:
- Make affirmative efforts to invest in climate solutions wherever feasible,
- Consider establishing climate-related investment beliefs or policies,
- Consider setting a target of investing a meaningful percentage of their assets in a broad range of climate solutions by 2020,
- Collaborate with other investors in sharing information on such investment opportunities,
- Report within the CSII community on an ongoing basis on their efforts and investments in this space, and
- Work with CSII Co-Leaders on communications opportunities to highlight success stories with the goal of catalyzing increased investment in the sector.
This initiative is premised on participating investors actively seeking qualifying investments, across asset classes, that meet their risk and return criteria. It is designed to allow significant flexibility in terms of how each investor meets the components of the initiative, so it is not overly prescriptive and can works for investors of varying size, culture, governance and decision- making processes. Participants include religious investors and endowments concerned about climate change and seeking to be part of the solution consistent with their fiduciary duty and investment objectives.
We encourage asset owner members of the three supporting organizations to join this initiative and collaborate with their peers to help achieve the shared goals of this initiative.
Related Resources:
- Investor Portal for CSII Participants (login required)
- Investment resources related to SDG 13: Climate Action