The Rockefeller heritage in sustainable and impact investing dates back to the 1970s, when the family office began public and private investment programs that incorporated environmental social values into the investment process.
Today, we believe that rigorous, ESG-integrated analysis coupled with deep shareholder engagement can deliver strong long-term results for our clients. To us, understanding secular environmental and social trends is tantamount to good investing. Intellectual capital built throughout our 40-year track record, constructive shareholder engagement approach, and award-winning research will continue to provide us insights not commonly found in the investment community.
Hear from RAM President and Chief Investment Officer, Casey Clark, and Director of ESG Research and Engagement, Sheryl Tierney as they discuss key trends in sustainable investing and our legacy in the space.
Rockefeller Asset Management
2022
Sustainable Investing
Annual Report
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Our Legacy
40
13
58
3
PRI awards* for ESG research, incorporation initiative, and strategy and governance
years of ESG
leadership
ESG strategies launched since
1991
percent of RAM workforce represented by women or
people of color
Our Networks and Partnerships
CERES
Council of Institutional Investors
FAIRR Initiative
High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy
Minderoo Foundation
Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
Planet Tracker
Principles for Responsible Investment
SASB Sector Advisory Group on Consumer
Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship
Sustainable Markets Initiative
The Ocean Foundation
World Resource Institute
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The Ocean Foundation
World Resource Institute
Minderoo Foundation
Planet Tracker
Sustainable Markets Initiative
Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
FAIRR Initiative
SASB Sector Advisory Group on Consumer
High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy
United Nations Environment Programme
Council of Institutional Investors
Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship
Principles for Responsible Investment
*PRI’s ESG Research Report of the Year Award: Award given September 2019. The 2019 awards were open to both ongoing and completed projects. Ongoing projects had to have been initiated, and completed projects had to have been completed, no earlier than 1 May 2017. PRI created and presented the award. Winners were decided by a PRI-convened panel of independent industry judges. No compensation has been provided by Rockefeller in connection with obtaining or using this award. The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is an international network of investors (supported by, but not part of, the United Nations) working to understand the investment implications of ESG factors and to support its international network of investor “signatories” in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The PRI Awards recognize signatories in four ESG-related categories. Signatories are invited to nominate projects and entries are assessed by an independent panel of judges who score them against category-specific criteria. These awards are subjective and do not reflect an endorsement of Rockefeller by PRI or any of the judges or signatories.
*Received 6th A+ on UN PRI Assessment Report for Strategy & Governance and A+ for Listed Equity – Incorporation: The 2020 assessment rating was released on 07/30/2020. The rating covers year end date for reporting - 12/31/2019. PRI created and tabulated the rating. The methodology for determining the awards is as follows: Core assessed: all signatories will be assessed on these indicators and they will make up the majority (~75%) of their overall assessment score for each module. These indicators will frequently, but not always, be mandatory to disclose. Additional assessed: signatories can generally complete these indicators if they wish (i.e. they will usually be ‘voluntary to report’) and they will provide an opportunity to demonstrate more advanced stages of implementation or reflect alternative practices. Scores from these indicators can only add to the final score for each module, and when combined with their scores on Core assessed indicators, have the potential to push signatories into a higher performance band. No compensation has been provided by Rockefeller in connection with obtaining or using this award. These awards are subjective and do not reflect on the future performance or ESG capabilities of Rockefeller. Furthermore, these awards do not reflect an endorsement of Rockefeller by PRI or any of the judges or signatories.
*PRI’s ESG Incorporation Initiative of the Year Award: Award presented October 2021. The 2021 awards were open to both ongoing and completed projects. To be eligible, completed projects had to have been completed no earlier than 1 May 2020. PRI created and presented the award. Winners were decided by a PRI-convened panel of independent industry judges. No compensation has been provided by Rockefeller in connection with obtaining or using this award. The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is an international network of investors (supported by, but not part of, the United Nations) working to understand the investment implications of ESG factors and to support its international network of investor “signatories” in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The PRI Awards recognize signatories in four ESG-related categories. Signatories are invited to nominate projects and entries are assessed by an independent panel of judges who score them against category-specific criteria. These awards are subjective and do not reflect on the future performance or ESG capabilities of Rockefeller. Furthermore, these awards do not reflect an endorsement of Rockefeller by PRI or any of the judges or signatories.
To test the strength of the signal value while controlling for factor, sector, and geographic exposures, we ran an optimization on the Bloomberg US 3000 and Bloomberg Developed Market Indices while excluding companies that violate Rockefeller’s Risk Exclusion Policy and which maximized REIS while constraining turnover to 40%, tracking error to 1%, active factor risk to 0.25%, sector deviations to +/- 1%, and region deviations to +/- 2% along with rules for minimum and maximum weights and number of securities. The process was designed to isolate returns generated from REIS with minimal tracking error and other risks derived from factor, sector, or geographic exposures. At any time, RAM may review and modify the materiality map, data inputs, imputation process, and other aspects of the process to calculate REIS. Any such changes to the model may positively or negatively affect a company’s REIS throughout the history of the dataset. Additional disclosures are at the end of this report.
These materials are provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as a research report or as a recommendation to buy or sell any securities, to adopt any particular investment strategy, or to constitute accounting, tax, or legal advice. The views expressed are those of Rockefeller Asset Management's investment professionals as of a particular point in time and are subject to change without notice. The views of Rockefeller Asset Management’s investment professionals may differ from or conflict with those of other divisions in Rockefeller Asset Management. The information herein does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy interests in any Rockefeller Capital Management investment vehicle or product or service. Certain examples are intended to demonstrate aspects of Rockefeller Asset Management’s engagement process with companies. Rockefeller Asset Management may take different approaches with other companies and there is no guarantee that any engagement effort will be successful. A complete list of company engagements is available upon request. The information and opinions presented herein have been obtained from, or are based on, sources believed by Rockefeller Capital Management to be reliable, but Rockefeller Capital Management makes no representation as to their accuracy or completeness. Actual events or results may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated herein. Company references are provided for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice or a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold any security. Forward-looking statements, including those presented here, are inherently uncertain, as future events may differ materially from those projected, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or avoidance of loss. Although the information provided is carefully reviewed, Rockefeller Asset Management is not responsible for any direct or incidental loss resulting from applying any of the information provided. Logos are the properties of their respective owners. Investing involves risk, including risk of loss. Impact investing and/or Environmental Social Governance (ESG) investing has certain risks based on the fact that ESG criteria excludes securities of certain issuers for nonfinancial reasons and therefore, investors may forgo some market opportunities and the universe of investments available will be smaller. These materials may not be reproduced or distributed without Rockefeller Asset Management’s prior written consent. Rockefeller Capital Management is the marketing name for Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. and its affiliates. Investment advisory, asset management and fiduciary activities are performed by the following affiliates of Rockefeller Capital Management: Rockefeller & Co. LLC, Rockefeller Financial LLC, Rockefeller Trust Company, N.A. and The Rockefeller Trust Company (Delaware), as the case may be. Rockefeller Asset Management is a division of Rockefeller & Co. LLC, a registered investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Rockefeller Financial LLC is a broker-dealer and investment adviser dually registered with the SEC; Member Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA); Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). Copyright 2023© Rockefeller Capital Management. All Rights Reserved. Products and services may be provided by various affiliates of Rockefeller Capital Management.