UPP joins the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance

Today, University Pension Plan Ontario (UPP) announced its membership to the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance (NZAOA), as part of its efforts to drive down greenhouse gas emissions in the real economy while pursuing a net zero portfolio by 2040 or sooner. The announcement comes on the COP 27 Finance Day—one of the thematic days taking place at the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (COP 27)—where financial institution representatives will discuss finance mobilization for climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.

“Becoming a member of the Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance was a key commitment from our Climate Action Plan, and one we’re pleased to make a reality today. As a pension plan with generational responsibilities, it’s critical we help catalyze the transition to a resilient net-zero world. We look forward to working collaboratively across the global financial sector to achieve real-world climate action,” said Barbara Zvan, President and CEO, UPP.

“The Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance is proud to have arrived at 80 members during COP27, welcoming UPP and Provinzial as the two latest joiners. This puts the Alliance on the right path of fulfilling its recruitment goal of growing to either 200 members or US$25 tr in AUM by 2025,” noted Remco Fischer, NZAOA Secretariat Co-Lead and UNEP FI Programme Officer for Climate.

The Alliance’s 80 members currently represent more than $10.9 trillion in assets under management. It is convened by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and is supported by World Wildlife Fund and Global Optimism, an initiative led by Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

To become part of the Alliance, all members are required to commit to:

• transitioning their investment portfolios to net-zero GHG emissions by 2050, consistent with a maximum temperature rise of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels;
• establishing intermediate targets every five years;
• and regularly reporting on progress.

Requirements of NZAOA are embedded throughout UPP’s Climate Action Plan, launched earlier this year, helping to shape and define activities under the key pillars of Evaluate, Invest, Engage, and Advocate. UPP is committed to publishing targets and reporting on the progress of our Climate Action Plan in line with the expectations of the Alliance.

For more information on UPP’s Climate Action Plan and responsible investing approach, please see our Responsible Investing page.