Sustainable Pension Fund Investing Training Course

Participants can distinguish sustainable investment approaches and assess the claims attached to each.

• ESG integration, exclusions, screening and thematic allocation compared
• Impact investing distinguished from responsible investment and philanthropy
• Best-in-class screening methods and benchmark-construction implications examined
• Sustainability labels assessed against stated objectives and evidence
• Greenwashing indicators identified in fund marketing and manager materials
• Theory of change used to test intended investment outcomes

Participants can identify and prioritise sustainability factors with financial relevance to a pension portfolio.

• Double materiality compared with investor financial materiality assessments
• Sector materiality maps built using revenue exposure and value-chain risks
• SASB industry topics used for issuer-level research questions
• Controversy severity assessed through scale, scope and remediability
• Material risks linked to cash flows, discount rates and terminal values
• Priority sustainability themes ranked against portfolio exposures and liabilities

Participants can draft policy provisions and governance arrangements for sustainable investment implementation.

• Statement of investment principles amended with sustainability commitments
• Governance charters assigning board, committee, staff and adviser accountabilities
• Decision rights defined for exclusions, stewardship and manager escalation
• Annual workplans linking policy commitments to measurable implementation actions
• Control frameworks covering data validation, approvals and exception management
• Policy review triggers tied to regulation, funding and market developments

Participants can evaluate sustainability data sources and document appropriate limits on their use.

• ESG ratings methodologies compared for coverage, weighting and update frequency
• Issuer disclosures checked for scope, assurance and reporting boundaries
• Missing data treated through proxies, estimation rules and confidence flags
• Vendor disagreements investigated using underlying indicators and source documents
• Look-through data requirements specified for pooled funds and derivatives
• Data lineage documented from issuer source through portfolio dashboard

Participants can interpret climate-risk measures and use scenarios to inform investment decisions.

• Physical and transition risks mapped to asset-class return drivers
• Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions boundaries interpreted carefully
• Financed emissions calculated using portfolio attribution approaches
• Weighted average carbon intensity compared with absolute emissions measures
• NGFS climate scenarios used to test portfolio vulnerabilities
• Scenario limitations documented without presenting outputs as forecasts

Participants can assess transition plans and establish credible portfolio decarbonisation targets.

• Issuer transition plans tested for governance, capex and milestones
• Science-based target claims reviewed against disclosed emissions boundaries
• Portfolio targets distinguished from economy-wide decarbonisation outcomes
• Base years, target years and recalculation policies specified
• Carbon-budget approaches compared with intensity-reduction target methods
• Target exceptions documented for sovereigns, derivatives and private assets

Participants can incorporate material sustainability considerations into strategic asset allocation decisions.

• Asset-liability modelling assumptions challenged for climate-sensitive economic pathways
• Strategic asset allocation reviewed against transition and physical-risk exposures
• Liquidity needs assessed under climate-related repricing and collateral calls
• Expected-return inputs adjusted only with documented financial evidence
• Concentration analysis identifies correlated sustainability risks across managers
• Portfolio constraints tested for tracking error and funding implications

Participants can apply sustainability analysis to listed equity and fixed-income investment decisions.

• Equity valuation integrates material ESG drivers into revenue forecasts
• Governance quality assessed through board independence and shareholder rights
• Credit analysis links environmental liabilities to default-risk assessment
• Use-of-proceeds bonds reviewed against green bond framework criteria
• Sovereign analysis considers institutions, resource dependency and social stability
• Benchmark selection tested for exclusions, tilts and unintended exposures

Participants can conduct sustainability due diligence for private-market and real-asset investments.

• Private-equity due diligence tests operating partners, incentives and exit plans
• Real-estate assessments examine energy performance, retrofit costs and resilience
• Infrastructure cases evaluate concession risk, community consent and adaptation
• Limited-partnership agreements reviewed for ESG reporting and information rights
• Project-level impact claims tested against counterfactual and additionality evidence
• Valuation assumptions challenged for remediation, insurance and stranded assets

Participants can evaluate external managers’ sustainable investment capabilities using structured due diligence.

• Request-for-proposal questions test governance, research and investment integration
• Manager track records reviewed through holdings, decisions and engagement evidence
• ESG team resources assessed for authority, incentives and investment access
• Portfolio construction methods examined for unintended factor and sector biases
• Subcontracted research providers assessed for oversight and data controls
• Due-diligence scores translated into documented selection recommendations

Participants can specify enforceable sustainability requirements within investment mandates and agreements.

• Mandate objectives align return targets, constraints and sustainability priorities
• Exclusion lists define thresholds, data sources and breach treatment
• Engagement obligations specify topics, milestones and escalation expectations
• Voting guidelines address shareholder resolutions, directors and remuneration
• Reporting clauses establish frequency, metrics, evidence and data formats
• Termination and remediation provisions address persistent mandate noncompliance

Participants can design an active ownership programme with clear priorities and accountability.

• Stewardship priorities selected from material portfolio exposures and ownership rights
• Engagement objectives framed with issuer actions, deadlines and evidence
• Escalation ladders cover meetings, voting, collaboration and divestment review
• Proxy-voting records reconciled against published policy and manager explanations
• Collaborative engagement assessed for competition law and governance controls
• Stewardship outcomes reported through activity, response and outcome indicators

Participants can assess when impact objectives are appropriate and how outcomes should be evidenced.

• Impact objectives defined through intentionality, contribution and measurement criteria
• Additionality assessed at investor, enterprise and market-system levels
• Outcome indicators selected with baselines, targets and measurement frequency
• SDG mapping tested against specific investee activities and revenue sources
• Beneficiary surveys interpreted without substituting preference for fiduciary analysis
• Trade-offs documented between financial return, risk and outcome objectives

Participants can design reporting that responds to major sustainable-investment disclosure requirements.

• ISSB IFRS S1 and S2 disclosures mapped to pension reporting needs
• TCFD architecture applied to governance, strategy, risk and metrics
• EU Taxonomy alignment assessed using eligibility and alignment criteria
• SFDR concepts reviewed for pension products and manager disclosures
• Principal adverse impact indicators tested for relevance and data availability
• Member communications distinguish commitments, actions, results and limitations

Participants can evaluate sustainability-related performance and risk without overstating causality.

• Factor attribution separates sector, style and security-selection effects
• Tracking error monitored against sustainable benchmark design choices
• Exclusion impacts assessed through investable-universe and concentration changes
• Climate-risk indicators linked to risk limits and portfolio-review triggers
• Engagement outcomes evaluated separately from investment performance attribution
• Dashboard thresholds distinguish monitoring signals from investment decision rules

Participants can sequence sustainable investment implementation actions, resources and governance decisions.

• Current-state assessment identifies policy, data, capability and control gaps
• Materiality priorities converted into a phased implementation roadmap
• Resource requirements estimate internal ownership, adviser support and budget
• Manager transition plans sequence mandate amendments and procurement events
• Change communications address trustees, executives, members and service providers
• Key risk indicators track delivery, data quality and mandate compliance

Participants can build, review and present a complete sustainable investment proposal for a pension fund investment committee.

• Investment beliefs and fiduciary rationale stated for committee approval
• Materiality assessment prioritises portfolio risks and opportunity themes
• Policy, mandate and stewardship recommendations form an integrated package
• Climate targets, metrics and reporting boundaries documented transparently
• Implementation roadmap assigns owners, milestones, costs and control checks
• Committee presentation defends recommendations against challenge and alternative options