This week in ESG
Nature funding, defence debates, and a halt on US company meetings with asset managers.
Key highlights
🤝UN commits $200bn annually for nature
- After postponing a decision from the COP 16 biodiversity conference in October, over 140 countries have pledged $200bn per year to combat biodiversity loss.
🛑Blackrock and Vanguard halt stewardship meetings
- Both asset managers temporarily stopped all stewardship meetings in the US in response to the increased reporting requirements placed on ‘investor activism’ by the Trump administration. Meetings have now resumed.
📝The ethics of defence stocks
- Over 100 Labour MPs and Peers sign letter urging UK investors to include defence stocks in ESG portfolios to help support Ukraine’s defence efforts.
⚠️State Street loses major mandate on ESG concerns
- The People’s Pension (TPP) stripped State Street of its £28bn equity and fixed interest mandates after they scaled back ESG commitments. TPP has instead switched its equity mandate to Amundi, praising their better alignment with responsible investment principles.
🌳Microsoft signs afforestation deal in India
- The tech giant agreed to purchase 1.5m tonnes of carbon removal credits in a groundbreaking 30-year deal to help grow forests in India.
Chart spotlight - the UK’s net zero costs are falling
Source: Bloomberg; Climate Change Committee, 2025. Note: costs cover the period between 2025 and 2050
The chart above highlights the estimated net cost for the UK to reach net zero, comparing calculations from 2020 to this year. This comes from a new report from the UK’s Climate Change Committee.
Why this matters
In the face of increasing global concern about our planet, especially in light of changing attitudes in the US, it’s encouraging to see the estimated costs of achieving net zero in the UK has significantly deceased over the last five years. Today’s net cost is estimated to be around £108bn – a major reduction from £402bn in 2020. While still a very large sum, this translates to just £4.2bn per year - only 0.2% of GDP - until 2050.
The authors of this report largely attribute the improvement down to greater technological innovations lowering costs, pointing to renewable energy and electric vehicles often being more affordable than traditional fossil-fuel-based options. The future is looking greener and more cost-effective!
Celebrating diversity: key insights from our 2025 study
Last week, we marked International Women’s Day, and we're excited to share the results of our fifth annual diversity study. For the past five years, we've worked with the 49 fund managers we partner with to gather data on the gender and ethnic diversity of their teams and board members. The results are in, and we've got some powerful insights to share! Here’s what we discovered…
2025 gender and race diversity study results
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Parmenion accepts no duty of care or liability for loss arising from any person acting, or refraining from acting, as a result of any information contained within this article. All investment carries risk. The value of investments, and the income from them, can go down as well as up and investors may get back less than they put in. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
