Sustainability-focused Investing

Making a sustainable impact—on portfolios, and the world.

Sustainability-focused solutions strive to generate strong competitive returns AND make a positive impact on the world.

Sustainability-focused solutions: two goals

Responsible investing is a spectrum—and there are no universally accepted classifications. The spectrum and definitions will continue to evolve as new solutions and innovations enter the investment industry. Currently, we have classified established investment approaches into the categories below. Along the spectrum, sustainability-focused solutions intersect where the goals overlap—they are designed to deliver competitive returns while also making a positive societal and/or environmental impact in the world.

Investment approach	Screening	ESG integration	Sustainability-focused	Impact-first	Philanthropy
Definition	Actively eliminate or select investments according to specific ethical values	Mitigate risky ESG practices in order to protect value	Address specific societal challenges that generate competitive returns	Measure progress against specific environmental and social goals	Measure progress against specific environmental and social goals without striving for returns
Primary objective is delivering competitive returns	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Goal of social and/or environmental impact	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes

Benefits of sustainability-focused investing

Risk mitigation

Issues like regulatory change and climate risk (and others) can materially impact performance; sound risk management can mitigate these risks.

Return potential

Responsible investing has been linked to better risk-adjusted performance in the long term.

Aligned with values

Investors can be confident that their portfolios align with particular personal values.

Improving the world

Solve for societal and/or environmental issues affecting the world around us.

Sustainability-focused solutions

We are committed to broadening our sustainability-focused offering, starting with Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure¹.

About Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure

This solution is designed to capitalize on the growing opportunities in listed sustainable infrastructure, globally focused on three key areas:

Water
Clean energy
Agriculture

Driven by insufficient supply and rising demand, these opportunities represent a potential US$38.5 trillion of investment in these three areas.

By 2030, it’s projected that $49.1 trillion will need to be spent in sustainable infrastructure. This is due to the insufficient supply and rising demand brought on by population growth and urbanization. On the left, we show how insufficient supply is due to less land for food production per capita; fossil fuels that are finite and polluting; and less than 1% of water that is available for use. On the right, we show how increasing demand is due to a rising demand for food +65% by 2050; energy +50% by 2050, and; water +40% by 2030 Therefore, it’s projected that by 2030, the following investments will be needed in sustainable infrastructure in the following three areas of focus: $2.5 T for agriculture; $22.0 T for energy, $14.0 T for water.

Source for infographic: Food Demand: Michigan State University, “feeding the world in 2050 and beyond”, 2018. Water Demand: Global Institute, November 2011: “Water and Power Infrastructure”. Energy Demand: US Energy Information Administration, 2019. Power and Water required investment: Brooking Institute, “Delivering on Sustainable Infrastructure”, 2016. Agribusiness required investment: FAO, “The Future of Food and Agriculture, Trends and Challenges, 2017: Land for Farming.“

Meet the manager: KBI Global Investors²

KBI GI

Founded in 1980
Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland
Managing responsible investing portfolios for more than three decades, and sustainability-focused solutions for more than two decades.

Video: CIO Discusses Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure

Noel O'Halloran

Director-Chief Investment Officer, KBI Global Investors, discusses the opportunity in sustainable infrastructure, and the advantages of Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure.

Learn more

OnTarget with Adelina Romanelli

Read: Opportunities in Sustainable Infrastructure

¹ Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure Segregated Fund is a segregated fund offered by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada through its Group Retirement Services platform; it invests directly in series I units of the Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure Private Pool, a mutual fund managed by SLGI Asset Management Inc. Series I securities are only available to certain mutual funds and eligible institutional investors. Commissions and trailing commissions are not payable on Series I securities but management fees and expenses may be associated with these investments. Each Series I investor negotiates its own management and advisory fee that is paid directly to SLGI Asset Management Inc. Please read the prospectus before investing.

² KBI Global Investors (North America) Ltd. is sub-advisor to Sun Life KBI Sustainable Infrastructure Private Pool and is part of the KBI Global Investors Ltd. Group.