Developments and commentary in and around the ESG investment space.

Aviva Investors, the asset management arm of UK-listed Aviva, is calling on major industrialised nations and global bodies such as the IMF and the World Bank to work harder to prevent climate change and prepare for the "net zero" goal of reducing carbon emissions.

The firm, which proposed an International Platform for Climate Finance in 2020, says that the principles of United Nations-affiliated finance initiatives should be updated to ensure that goals to reduce CO2 emissions are met.

“The current international order pre-dates awareness of the climate crisis and was originally set up with the primary goals of sustaining world peace and supporting global economic growth. Since then, these frameworks have not been revisited, reconfigured, or redesigned to reflect other issues affecting the world today. To these goals, we need to add the challenge of climate change, which represents a growing and catastrophic threat to life on our planet,” Mark Versey, chief executive, Aviva Investors, said. 

In a white paper, called Harnessing the international financial architecture to deliver a smooth and just transition, Aviva Investors sets out ideas, including encouraging the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development to bring forward proposals for convening an IPCF.  It invites the IMF to clarify its mandate to promote sustainable growth and financial stability, including the consideration of climate risk; and encourages governments and central banks to activate ideas from the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action and Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS).