Share
Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on email
Subscribe to our Insights
Risk warnings
The value of investments and any income derived from them can go down as well as up as a result of market or currency movements and investors may not get back the original amount invested.
Investing in emerging markets is generally considered to involve more risk than developed markets.
Views and opinions have been arrived at by BMO Global Asset Management and should not be considered to be a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell any stocks or products that may be mentioned.
The world has a finite pool of resources, and one of the great challenges facing societies is how to drive economic growth without straining these resources to breaking point, or degrading our environment through their usage.
This is the art of doing more with less, and doing it cleanly and sustainably. Examples of resource inefficiency are distressingly common. Only 50% of the edible food we produce is ever actually eaten. In the UK, trucks on average carry only a 27% load factor, meaning a remarkable 73% of haulage capacity is wasted. Despite being the most abundant compound on the planet, one in nine people do not have access to clean, safe water.
Corporations can and must be at the forefront of driving a more efficient use of energy, water and other vital materials, whether at the stage of extraction, transport or consumption. In our Responsible Global Equity Strategy, we are invested in some of the world’s most innovative companies whose products and services are driving resource efficiency. An outstanding example is Xylem, whose mission statement is simply “to solve water”. Xylem helps companies acquire, move, treat and test water efficiently, minimising losses. Driving resource efficiency not only brings about a more sustainable planet; it can also make businesses less wasteful and more profitable.
Our global economy was built on a linear system, where we use resources once and then dispose of them – we urgently need to shift to a circular economy.
Nick Henderson, Director, Portfolio Manager, Global Equities
Risk warnings
The value of investments and any income derived from them can go down as well as up as a result of market or currency movements and investors may not get back the original amount invested.
Investing in emerging markets is generally considered to involve more risk than developed markets.
Views and opinions have been arrived at by BMO Global Asset Management and should not be considered to be a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell any stocks or products that may be mentioned.
Engagement in focus – here we detail the businesses we own within the ‘resource efficiency’ theme, alignment between their activities and the SDGs together with our engagement efforts.
* 1 Source: World Health Organization, Universal Health Coverage Monitoring Report, 22 September 2019. https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/22-09-2019-countries-mustinvest-at-least-1-more-of-gdp-on-primary-health-care-to-eliminate-glaring-coverage-gapsWhere company revenues do not add to 100%, then there is no SDG link for the remainder of the business revenues
Subscribe to our Insights
Read our BMO Responsible Global Equity Strategy ESG Profile and Impact Report 2020
For Professional Clients and/or Qualified Investors only
