#70 Andrew Gray: How AustralianSuper engages with companies on climate action and net-zero targets

Andrew Gray is Director of ESG and Stewardship at AustralianSuper, which is the country’s largest superannuation fund.

And while the fund manages people’s nest-eggs, they have the challenging role of planning long into the future. Sustainability isn’t optional to them, sustainability is about long-term thinking, and avoiding risks, to try and make sure retirement is comfortable, and that the environment is still in good shape

Andrew has been with AustralianSuper for ten years, and before that he was at Goldman Sachs. His long experience has been welcomed on the global stage with his role on the Steering Committee of the Climate Action 100+ network.

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Good Future · Andrew Gray: How Australian Super engages with companies on climate action and net-zero targets

On this episode…

We discussed how Australian Super uses engagement as a method to influence the companies in which it invests, but also, how this tactic is being scaled through collaborating in a network like Climate Action 100+.

Andrew explains how and why they set a target for their portfolio to achieve Net Zero Emissions by 2050.

My key takeaway this week…

“We’re forecasting a whole range of variables, and we need to align the portfolio with those forecasts, so really, net zero by 2050 is an economic forecast.

That’s where the economy is going, and so we need to align the portfolio with that if it’s going to generate the best returns for members.”

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