Welcome to the first Masterclass series on The Australian Investors Podcast. In the next 45-60 minutes you will go on a deep dive into the topic of ESG with some of Australia’s top experts, including Perennial’s Emilie O’Neill, Atchison Consultants’ Jake Jodlowski, and Wattle Partners’ Drew Meredith.
You’ll discover:
- What you need to know about the ESG market
- The difference ESG investment options
- How to perform due diligence on ESG funds and strategies
- How experts use ESG strategies in portfolios
ESG stands for Environmental, Social & Governance and it refers to investors using their portfolios to intentionally avoid investments via negative screening techniques, or pursue investments that are positively contributing to society or the planet.
ESG has rapidly risen in popularity over the past decade, with trillions of dollars now invested in ESG-related strategies across pension funds, sovereign wealth portfolios, managed funds and ETFs. ESG investing can apply to all types of markets, in every sector and in every asset class.
While the ESG investment landscape is growing rapidly, many parts of it are still in their infancy. Data providers like MSCI and specialist research houses and consultants are emerging to solve problems like ESG standards and comparability, the avoidance of greenwashing, and how to construct green portfolios.
The true efficacy of ESG investing is very contentious and still open to interpretation. Some investors believe the best outcomes will come from investing in “unethical” companies and being active in voting or setting standards for management and boards. Other investors believe a complete avoidance of sectors or companies (e.g. tobacco, gaming, pornography, etc.) can result in better outcomes.
Regardless of what happens next, it seems the topic of ESG isn’t going away anytime soon.
50 years of investing expertise in one episode
To help us navigate through this emerging theme we’ll be joined by Emilie O’Neill of Perennial Partners, who walks us through the sub-sector options. Then Jake Jodlowski, a highly experienced investment consultant from Atchison Consultants, explains how to perform due diligence. Finally, Drew Meredith, the director of Wattle Partners financial planning explains how to actually implement some of these strategies in a portfolio.
- Emillie O’Neill, Co-Head of ESG & Equities Analyst at Perennial Partners, with 6 years of experience;
- Drew Meredith, CFP, Director of Wattle Partners Financial Planning, with 19 years of experience;
- Jake Jodlowski, Principal of Atchison Consultants with 28 years of investment experience;
- Host: Owen Raszkiewicz, lead analyst at Rask, 10 years of investment experience.
this episode, you’ll LOVE our series. Episodes go live every Saturday at 7 am and Wednesday arvo.
