587 investors managing $46 trillion in assets  urge governments to take action  to accelerate climate investment before COP26

14 September 2021

14 September 2021 In the run-up to the most consequential United Nations climate change conference in years, and on the heels of another urgent warning from the world’s leading scientists, a record number of 587 investors with US$46 trillion in assets under management are urging governments to rapidly implement five priority policy actions that will allow them to invest the trillions needed to respond to the climate crisis.

Signatories to the 2021 Global Investor Statement to Governments on the Climate Crisis are issuing the strongest-ever unified call from investors for governments to raise their climate ambition and implement meaningful policies — including mandatory climate risk disclosure, strengthened national commitments, ending fossil fuel subsidies and phasing out thermal coal — or risk missing out on the enormous investment opportunities in tackling the climate crisis.

“Full implementation of the Paris Agreement will create significant investment opportunities in clean technologies, green infrastructure and other assets, products and services needed in this new economy,” the statement reads.

Investor signatories to the statement are calling on all governments to undertake five priority actions before the 26th United Nations Climate Conference in Glasgow in November (COP26):

  • Strengthen their NDCs for 2030 before COP26, to align with limiting warming to 1.5-degrees Celsius and ensuring a planned transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 or sooner.
  • Commit to a domestic mid-century, net-zero emissions target and outline a pathway with ambitious interim targets including clear decarbonisation roadmaps for each carbon-intensive sector.
  • Implement domestic policies to deliver these targets, incentivise private investments in zero-emissions solutions and ensure ambitious pre-2030 action.
  • Ensure COVID-19 economic recovery plans support the transition to net-zero emissions and enhance resilience.
  • Commit to implementing mandatory climate risk disclosure requirements aligned with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations.

Signatories to date include some of the world’s largest institutional investors and asset managers and asset owners. The combined assets under management of the 587 signatories is more than US$46 trillion, representing an estimated 40 percent of all global assets under management.

The statement remains open for additional investors to sign before COP26 in November 2021.

CEO of the Asia Investor Group on Climate Change (AIGCC) and Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC) (Australia/New Zealand) and Investor Agenda Steering Committee member, Rebecca Mikula-Wright, said: “Our analysis shows that the investment opportunities in the Asian energy sector alone from a Paris-aligned transition to net-zero emissions could reach US$37 trillion by 2050 – a century-defining investment theme. Meanwhile in Australia, stronger climate policies would create around US$46 billion in fresh investment opportunities to 2025. By working with investors to put in place robust policies, strong targets and a clear roadmap to reach net-zero emissions, Asian, Australian and New Zealand governments can unlock these enormous investment opportunities and the jobs, economic growth and competitive advantage they will bring.”

The statement has been developed by The Investor Agenda’s seven founding partners –– Asia Investor Group on Climate Change, CDP, Ceres, Investor Group on Climate Change, Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change, Principles for Responsible Investment and UNEP Finance Initiative.