ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ will divest from all direct holdings in fossil-fuel companies listed in the Carbon Underground 200 (CU200) for implementation in 2024 and completion in 2025 β one of eight commitments announced today in Phase 2 of the Universityβs results-driven socially responsible investment strategy.
This divestment will involve the liquidation of the remaining direct CU200 holdings within the ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Investment Pool (MIP) β holdings which constituted just 1% of total MIP assets as of December 31, 2022*, after years of targeted decarbonization. At that point in time, more than 99% of the MIP was held outside the CU200, with a sizeable proportion held in sustainable investments.
Though divestment from the MIPβs minimal remaining direct CU200 holdings sends an important symbolic message, ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ has long held that maximizing its impact means minimizing its carbon footprint. This has involved shareholder engagement with companies on decarbonization targets, and focusing divestment efforts on firms that may not extract fossil fuels directly but use them in highly emissions-intensive industries (cement and steel manufacturers, coal and gas-fired electricity generators, and other firms that drive global fossil fuel demand).
That results-driven approach remains fundamental to ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs decarbonization plan and socially responsible investment strategy. This focus on curtailing emissions has already sparked a massive 49% reduction in the MIPβs listed equity portfolio carbon footprint between 2019 and 2022.
βFrom expanding our decarbonization target, to divesting from direct CU200 holdings, to doubling our investments in solutions to the global challenges outlined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ is proud to be leading sustainable investment across Canadaβs university landscape,β said Maryse Bertrand, Chair of ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs Board of Governors.
βIn just three years weβve removed about 73,000 tonnes of annual carbon emissions from the MIP, the equivalent of removing more than 14,000 gas vehicles from the road every year,β added Sophie Leblanc, ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs Chief Investment Officer. βNow we are challenging ourselves to be even more ambitious and invest further in emerging clean technologies and renewable energy infrastructure.β
βWhile developing our new commitments,β Leblanc noted, βwe carefully reviewed the socially responsible investment strategies of other major Canadian universities. We are confident that the breadth of actions ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ announced today will cement its place at the forefront of sustainable investment among our Canadian peers.β
These commitments, approved by ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs Board of Governors on December 14, include:
- Sustaining a carbon footprint at least 33% below emissions generated by companies in ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs listed equity and fixed income benchmarks, which are outlined within ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβsΜύStatement of Investment Policy.
- Allocating 10% of the MIP to Sustainable Investment Strategies aligned with the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) by 2029.
- Enhancing our engagement initiatives by broadening the scope of topics to encompass social and governance considerations, while continuing to address climate change.
- Continuing to offer a fossil-fuel-free fund to ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ donors β the first such fund in a major Canadian university endowment.
- Improving ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) score, the first such commitment for a major Canadian university endowment.
- Integrating an Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) scoring system and risk metrics into our fund manager monitoring processes.
- Continuing to report annually on our progress.
A full list of these commitments is availableΜύhere.
βΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ is committed to fighting the climate crisis not only in its teaching and research, but in everything we do,β said Deep Saini, President and Vice-Chancellor. βThese new commitments provide yet another opportunity for us to demonstrate our values, and work toward a greener Quebec and a greener world.β
These investment commitments align with ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs broader sustainability strategy, which includes becoming a fullyΜύcarbon-neutralΜύuniversity by 2040 and achievingΜύzero-waste campusesΜύby 2035. ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ has been repeatedly recognized as a global sustainability leader β most recently placing 13thΜύout of 1,397 institutions worldwide in theΜύ.
TheΜύΜύ(CU200) is a globally recognized list of βthe top 100 coal and the top 100 oil and gas publicly-traded reserve holders globally, ranked by the potential carbon emissions content of their reported reserves.β
This article wasΜύfirst published on 15 December 2023 on ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Newsroom.
* When this information was first published, our analysis indicated that direct investments in CU200 firms constituted 0.5% of ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Investment Pool (MIP) assets on December 31, 2022, while indirect investments represented 0.4%. During a detailed review in January 2024, we discovered that direct CU200 holdings on December 31, 2022 had in fact constituted 1% of MIP holdings, with a further 0.7% in indirect holdings.Μύ
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ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ regrets this error and has implemented corrective measures to ensure accuracy going forward. Notably, we are working to have CU200 holdings verified by an external firm, and in the meantime will ensure that all calculations undergo rigorous internal verification involving two peer reviews. and ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ remains fully committed to itsΜύsocially responsible investing (SRI) goalsΜύβ including its commitment to full MIP divestment from direct CU200 holdings by 2025.Μύ