Investing

Sustainability is fully integrated into the investment decision-making process for all existing and potential third-party fund managers, considering their approach to reducing emissions from their underlying portfolios as part of our due diligence.

Further, we aim for the CUEF to have no meaningful exposure to fossil fuels by 2030.

UCIM also seeks to invest in ways that support the transition to a low-carbon economy. Since 2021, we have committed over £100m to funds specialising in renewable energy infrastructure. As well as supporting our ambition to reach net zero by 2038, we believe investing in the energy transition represents an attractive risk/return profile in its own right.

Engaging

Our greatest impact comes from our ability to influence our fund manager partners across the portfolio. As of 30 June 2023, our partners have nearly $750 billion of combined assets under management – demonstrating the scale of the opportunity for us to shape the sustainability agenda across the investment landscape.

A core component of our engagement activity is a dedicated, bespoke course developed by UCIM in partnership with the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (“CISL”) – ‘Net Zero by 2038’ to help fund managers contribute to a Net Zero future. To date, a total of 18 investment firms with a total of $144bn of assets under management have completed three cohorts of programme.

Reporting

We aim to have open engagement with all stakeholders, improving transparency in reporting our activity and progress against delivering on our sustainable investment strategy.