Biodiversity : central to our investment considerations
Already incorporated through our proprietary ESG rating “GREaT”, which contains a criterion focused on biodiversity serving to include company practices with respect to nature; the commitments made by LBP AM And Tocqueville Finance in favour of biodiversity have been expanded in the last two years and rolled out by activating several levers: an exclusion list, shareholder engagement, signing of a financial centre pledge and a dedicated thematic fund.
1/ Exclusion list
Since 2019, we have developed a list of activities excluded from the investment universe for all Group investments due to their adverse impact on biodiversity.
Initially limited to deforestation for producers of at-risk commodities (palm oil, soy, livestock, rubber, wood and cocoa), this list is set to evolve in late 2022 with the publication of LBP AM’s holistic biodiversity policy.
2/ Shareholder engagement
The aim is to dialogue with companies in a bid to understand their challenges and help them implement change. Dialogue can be undertaken collectively with other investors in order to generate stronger leverage for action.
A second shareholder engagement initiative is undertaken individually by LBPAM with a selection of companies for which individual efforts are made to assess their progress in implementing biodiversity-friendly measures.
3/ Signing of a financial centre pledge
LBP AM and Tocqueville Finance joined the Finance for Biodiversity Pledge last year. This pledge, which encompasses around one-hundred international financial institutions, aims to attract investors around a shared goal of biodiversity protection.
The pledge comes with commitments: participation in working groups on the issue of biodiversity, dialogue with portfolio companies to promote best practices, measurement of the biodiversity footprint of investments and establishment of targets to reduce this footprint by end-2023.
4 / Dedicated SRI-certified and Article 9 (SFDR) thematic fund
In 2022, LBP AM and Tocqueville Finance launched a thematic fund, Tocqueville Biodiversity ISR, aimed at funding companies offering alternative solutions to biodiversity challenges and natural capital.
Tocqueville Biodiversity ISR’s investment universe covers four main themes: sustainable agriculture and food, circular economy, green buildings, and environmental services and solutions.
Art & Biodiversity
LBP AM and Tocqueville Finance wanted to incorporate Biodiversity into their very offices through the “Biodiversity” exhibition of Bianca Bondi, a South-African artist who succeeded in developing an organic, resolutely multi-disciplinary body of work with a firm grasp of ecological considerations.