Towards the end of last year, I wrote an article about how world events, particularly those that are climate-related, are impacting our daily lives.
Looking ahead to the coming decade, it doesn’t take the brains of Einstein to predict that climate change is going to be one of the top issues that we collectively need to address.
Every day decisions, whether that’s if we eat meat, buy plastic goods, use a tumble dryer, drive a petrol/diesel car etc will be choices that many of us will be thinking carefully about and perhaps starting to make changes to the way we live and what we take for granted.
Ethical has performed well
Once behavioural change really starts to take off, this will also impact investment outcomes. As consumers start to switch their habits and governments legislate to clamp down on industries which most negatively impact climate change, the opportunity for investing in ‘greener’ industries and organisations will come to the fore.
Interest in ethical investment has been growing for many years and at PortfolioMetrix we’ve seen good performance from the ethical oriented funds we’ve selected for our portfolios.
Our prediction is that interest in ethical investing is only going to go one way – up. It’s an exciting proposition that our investment team is closely monitoring and they will be publishing a PortfolioMetrix guide on the topic in the near future.
Investing for a better future
As greener investment opportunities increase, investors will be able to put their hard-earned money into funds that support organisations working towards making our world a better place. As those organisations grow and flourish, those who invest in them should see good returns, which would definitely be a win-win situation.
So, as you ponder whether the teabag you use for your next cuppa contains micro plastics, or if you really should make a coffee with one of the pods favoured by George Clooney, let’s be optimistic and look forward to all having a part to play in changing the world for the better.
