ENERGY TRANSITION
CLIMATE INVESTING: THINK POSITIVELY
Deirdre Cooper and Graeme Baker, Co-Portfolio Managers on the Global Environment Fund, say there is real positive action to decarbonise the economy and investors can benefit.
From record temperatures in the Antarctic to the row over the presidency of the UK-hosted COP26 climate talks, it’s easy to become despondent about climate change. Now the coronavirus crisis, and subsequent oil-price crash, have sparked speculation that efforts to cut emissions will be delayed further. Yet amid the scary headlines, there is still much to be optimistic about the world’s transition to a greener future. There’s an enormous amount still to do to meet emissions targets. But we believe there are at least three reasons for investors to think (and act) positively. After all, negativity will get us nowhere – it’s time for forceful, positive action on climate change. 6
1) Political and business momentum is becoming unstoppable We’re starting to see political responses to climate change that would have been unthinkable a few years ago. European industrial policy is now based entirely around the low-carbon economy, with the bloc’s leaders looking to halve emissions by 2030. Meanwhile, the UK has brought forward a prohibition on the sale of petrol and diesel cars by five years to 2035 at the latest. The present market turmoil may delay green policies slightly, but we think they are very unlikely to derail them. In fact, we would not be at all surprised if the stimulus programmes likely to follow the
