Fossil fuels, fast fashion, deforestation, gambling - do you know what your pension is being used for? Or how to ensure it’s invested ethically?
“Greening” your pension is “21 times more effective than giving up flying, becoming a vegetarian and changing your energy provider combined”. That’s according to the UK not-for-profit campaign group Make My Money Matter.fronts a provocative ad for the campaign aimed at waking people up to their pension choices.
If you don’t have a workplace pension but have arranged one yourself, you can ask your broker or a pension provider about more sustainable options, or talk to a financial adviser with experience in the area. “There are lots of fund options out there that are only marginally better than traditional funds, but they are marketed with language and imagery as an ESG choice,” says Hughes. “You need to get under the bonnet of what the fund actually invests in and how it’s managed from an ESG perspective,” he says.
The upside is that people are asking more questions, says Benson, and sometimes the answers aren’t straightforward. “It’s a common misconception that ethical and sustainable funds underperform when compared to traditional funds,” says Hughes. “In fact, in the past, many sustainable funds have actually outperformed their traditional peers,” he says.