PRI launches new nature stewardship platform for investors
The Principles for Responsible Investment, the UN-backed group that pushes for the implementation of green investment standards, has launched a new stewardship initiative on nature.
Presented at PRI in Person, the group's annual event which is taking place in Tokyo this week, it is planning to "convene a group of investors, who will use their voice and influence to drive positive outcomes for nature."
Investors are encouraged to sign up to an 'expectation statement', thereby confirming their support for the initiative’s objectives and strategy.
Endorsements can only come from asset owners, managers and service providers that are PRI members. The group is planning to reveal who has signed up at the beginning of next year.
In 2024, PRI will invite a number of investors to actively participate in the program, such as a lead or collaborating investor.
The initiative’s objective is for investors to contribute to the goal of halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. This is aligned with the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the PRI clarified.
"Investors are highly exposed to systemic risks like biodiversity loss. Universal owners and long-term investors have a limited ability to diversify their portfolios away from the impacts of such issues," it said in a statement presented at the PRI in Person conference.
"Stewardship activities, particularly when carried out in collaboration with other investors, are an essential tool for managing risk, as well as driving more sustainable real-world outcomes."
The initial focus will be on forest loss and land degradation, as a key driver of biodiversity loss, and will likely expand to other drivers of biodiversity loss as the initiative develops further.
It will focus on enabling policy alignment and implementation across geographies to help generate positive outcomes for nature and investor portfolios.
"Focusing investor efforts on policy will make it more likely that systemic risks are addressed across economic sectors and at an appropriate pace," the PRI explained.
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