ESG panel: Opportunities and challenges involved in sustainable and socially responsible investing

At the Reuters ESG Investment Europe event in London, Jasper Petit, Bouwinvest’s Director of European Investments, participated in the 'Intertwining E, S and G' panel. The other panellists were Bahar Malavan Naryndji, Head of Compliance at Andra AP-Fonden, and Sindhu Krishna, Head of Sustainable Investments at Phoenix Group. Together, they discussed the opportunities and challenges involved in sustainable and socially responsible investing.   

During the panel discussion, they discussed the fact that the construction sector accounts for some 30-40% of global CO2 emissions and that institutional parties have a major responsibility on this front. At the same time, Jasper stressed that balancing this social return with financial returns has been a challenge for a very long time. However, he noted that from a legislation point of view, for example, investors have a financial incentive to take responsibility. “In addition, an increasing number of tenants now see sustainability as a decisive factor when they’re choosing a home, an office building or retail space. Especially with current energy prices. That, too, is a financial incentive and it is ultimately going to provide the necessary acceleration,” Jasper said.  

Curious what else was discussed? Listen to the discussion here.