FEATURE
Sustainably Investing: A Thread Through the Maze of Acronyms
As the investment management industry strives to adapt to the increasing momentum of Sustainable Investing, the speed with which ESG-related acronyms appear to be emerging may be disconcerting to many. To help navigate the maze of acronyms, this paper presents a typology of acronyms of organizations or initiatives that aim to contribute to the Sustainable Investing space. UN-Related Organizations and Initiatives - Several of these initiatives have been originated by the United Nations, which, given the organization’s mission, is seen as a first mover in the Sustainability space. Investment Industry Organizations and Collaborations - These have also responded to investor interest in ESG, either by leveraging the existing membership groups or by forming new collaborations with specific objectives. Sustainability Reporting Organizations and Initiatives - Several organizations have been formed to establish standards for sustainability reporting, an area of historical inconsistency in terms of format, depth, and quality of information presented. Climate-Related Organizations and Initiatives - There are also organizations that specifically aim to tackle climate change, although in varying ways. Some may focus on advocacy, others on reporting, while some focus on carbon measurement. Impact-Related Organizations and Tools - Lastly, several organizations aim to establish best practices and create investor tools for impact investing. A non-exhaustive list acronyms falling within these categories are listed in Table 1 below. Please refer to the Glossary at the end for an expansion of the acronyms and links to the organizations and initiatives. Table 1 - Typology of Acronyms Subsequent whitepapers will aim to provide more in-depth discussion on the relevance and application of the various frameworks and tools that have been created by the organizations noted in this paper. GLOSSARY UN-Related Organizations and Initiatives PRI: Principles for Responsible Investment UN SDGs: UN Sustainable Development Goals UNGC: UN Global Compact UNDP’s SDG Impact: United Nations Development Programme’s Sustainable Development Goals Impact UNEPFI: United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative NZAOA: UN-convened Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance Investment Industry Organizations and Collaborations ILPA: Institutional Limited Partners Association AIMA: Alternative Investment Management Association SBAI: Standards Board for Alternative Investments CFA Institute: Chartered Financial Analyst Institute The Investor Forum: UK investor collective on stewardship ICGN: International Corporate Governance Network ICSWG and ICSWG (US): Investment Consultants Sustainability Working Group European and US Chapter ESG Data Convergence Project: GPs and LPs collective Diversity Project: Membership organization that initiated the Asset Owner Diversity Charter RIA (Canada): Responsible Investment Association (Canada) RIAA: Responsible Investment Association Australasia GRESB: Global ESG Benchmark for Real Assets Sustainability Reporting Organizations and Initiatives GRI: Global Reporting Initiative SASB: Sustainability Accounting Standards Board IIRC: International Integrated Reporting Council VRF: Value Reporting Foundation IFRS Foundation: International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation ISSB: International Sustainability Standards Board WEF-IBC Initiative: World Economic Forum - International Business Council Initiative Climate-Related Organizations and Initiatives TCFD: Task Force for Climate-Related Financial Disclosures COP26: 26th Conference of the Parties SBTi: Science Based Targets initiative CDP: Climate Disclosure Project CDSB: Climate Disclosure Standards Board GHG Protocol: Greenhouse Gases Protocol IIGCC: Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change IGCC: Investor Group on Climate Change (Australia) AIGCC: Asia Investor Group on Climate Change Ceres Investor Network: North American investor group on climate change NZAMI: Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative iCI: Initiative Climat International ShareAction: Key proponent of Investor Decarbonization Initiative PCAF: Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials WBCSD: World Business Council for Sustainable Development Impact-Related Organizations and Tools IMP: Impact Management Project GIIN: Global Impact Investing Network IRIS+: Impact Reporting and Investing Standards+ OPIM: Operating Principles for Impact Management B Lab: Beneficial Lab III: Impact Investing Institute PFP: Pensions for Purpose IWA: Impact Weighted Accounts SROI: Social Return on Investment Nesta: UK innovation think-tank Jennifer Kizilbash Galang - April 2022