BOSTON, TORONTO and
LONDON, Nov. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Manulife Investment
Management released today its third annual sustainable and
responsible investing report for its institutional investment
management business. The report demonstrates its ongoing commitment
to sustainability, as interest in this area continues to grow
across the world.
The report documents significant progress across three key areas
of the firm's sustainability efforts: ESG integration, active
stewardship, and global collaboration to address systemic
sustainability issues.
Paul Lorentz, President and
CEO at Manulife Investment Management, said: "Our efforts
support our clients' aims and help bolster the environmental and
social foundations that enable the global economy to function. Our
priority is to continue to expand our sustainable investing
capabilities across public and private asset classes to meet our
clients' evolving needs."
Advancements in sustainability
- In 2020, Manulife Investment Management had 1,122 engagement
interactions with 985 equity and fixed-income issuers globally and
launched a proxy voting dashboard to disclose proxy voting
records.1 There was a conscious shift in focus from just
volume of conversations to outcomes-based engagements to address
material sustainability risks.
- Manulife Investment Management invested further in its
sustainability teams, which have grown from 16 to 25 sustainability
professionals globally as of 12/31/20.
- The firm was one of only 20 investment managers included in the
2020 PRI Leaders' Group in recognition of advanced efforts in
climate reporting.
- Building on its advanced ESG integration efforts across asset
classes, the firm expanded its sustainability offering through the
launch of a number of strategies with specific sustainability
objectives and made a significant impact-first timberland
investment that will primarily be used for carbon sequestration and
storage.2
Brian Kernohan, chief
sustainability officer, private markets, comments: "Our
purpose as an asset manager is to deliver strong risk-adjusted
investment returns for our clients over time while having a
positive impact on the environment and society through strong
stewardship. We believe a commitment to sustainable investing is
necessary for investors to be successful."
Peter Mennie, global head of
ESG integration and research, public markets, concludes: "We
are proud of our contributions in pursuit of more sustainable
business practices across the globe. We believe integrating all
elements of sustainable investing into our conversations with
company management, and using measurable data points to demonstrate
progress, can help mitigate the impact of material sustainability
risks in our portfolios and is aligned with the best interests of
our clients over the long term."
Since becoming a PRI signatory in 2015, Manulife Investment
Management has enhanced its sustainability practices across asset
classes and deepened its involvement in initiatives addressing
global sustainability challenges.
Click here for more information about the Manulife
Investment Management 2020 sustainable and responsible investing
report.
Manulife Investment Management
Manulife Investment Management is the global brand for the
global wealth and asset management segment of Manulife Financial
Corporation. We draw on more than a century of financial
stewardship and the full resources of our parent company to serve
individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide.
Headquartered in Toronto, our
leading capabilities in public and private markets are strengthened
by an investment footprint that spans 18 geographies. We complement
these capabilities by providing access to a network of unaffiliated
asset managers from around the world. We're committed to investing
responsibly across our businesses. We develop innovative global
frameworks for sustainable investing, collaboratively engage with
companies in our securities portfolios, and maintain a high
standard of stewardship where we own and operate assets, and we
believe in supporting financial well-being through our workplace
retirement plans. Today, plan sponsors around the world rely on our
retirement plan administration and investment expertise to help
their employees plan for, save for, and live a better
retirement.
As of September 30, 2021, Manulife
Investment Management's assets under management and administration,
including assets managed for Manulife's other segments, totaled CAD
$1.1 trillion (US $835 billion). Not all offerings are available in
all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit
manulifeim.com.
1. The full record is not publicly available. More information
is available on request. Proxy voting activities are completed for
public markets investments managed by Manulife Investment
Management public markets.
2. We look to incorporate material ESG considerations throughout
the stages of our investment and asset ownership lifecycles, taking
into account the characteristics of the asset class and investment
process in question, as well as industry and geography, among other
factors. Each investment team operates in different markets and
with different nuances to its approach to investing. Accordingly,
each team integrates ESG factors into its investment process in a
manner that best aligns with its investment approach.
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SOURCE Manulife Investment Management