EQ Sustainability & Investment update – Q4 2024 & Outlook for 2025

Tuesday 21 Jan 2025, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios
• Review of performance during Q4 2024
• Outlook for 2025 for sustainable investments
• Recent changes made to the portfolios
• Showcasing new company case studies
• An update on regulation especially the new UK sustainable labelling regime
• A focus on voting across the asset management industry

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 15 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

Applying AI for social & environmental good – 2024 Positive Impact Report findings

Wednesday 6 Nov 2024, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

We are pleased to invite you to the launch of the 2024 EQ Positive Impact Report. Our eighth annual report brings to life the social and environmental impacts associated with the investments & engagements made on behalf of our clients in the EQ Positive Impact strategy.

With the rise of AI having dominated headlines this year, we will explore the theme through the lens of sustainability. Exploring how to use AI for good and manage its unintended consequences is key to help us achieve global social and environmental goals.

You will hear directly from one of our impact fund managers – Impax Asset Management, on how this is being addressed now. Beyond this, the EQ Investors team will share key findings from our impact measurement project and detail the difference our active stewardship has made over the past year, including our work on climate change and biodiversity risk.

Topics covered:

• Can you invest in AI for good? Insights from Impax Asset Management.
• Key findings from the EQ Positive Impact Report 2024.
• The importance of our engagement in shifting the dial.
• Q&A.

Your speakers:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Johnny Bowie, Sustainability Analyst, EQ Investors
• Speaker tbc, Impax Asset Management

This webinar is suitable for retail clients & financial advisers.

EQ Sustainability & Investment update – Q3 2024

Thursday 17 Oct 2024, 11:30 am – 12:30 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios
• Implications of coming elections in the US & reflections on the first 100 days of the new Labour government
• Review of performance during Q3 2024
• Recent changes made to the portfolios
• Showcasing new company case studies
• An update on regulation especially the new UK sustainable labelling regime

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 15 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

Celebrating four years of sustainable passive investing

Thursday 21 Mar 2024, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm

Join us as we celebrate the 4-year anniversary of the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios. We’ll look at portfolio construction, dive deeper into the sustainability process and compare it vs peers. Finally, we will share our thoughts on what’s next for the Future Leaders strategy.

• The topics covered will include the following:
• Introduction to the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios.
• Evolution of the proposition since launch.
• Review of performance over last four years.
• What’s unique for the proposition vs peers
• What’s ahead for the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios.

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Johnny Bowie, Sustainability Analyst, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 15 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

EQ Sustainability & Investment update – Q2 2024

Wednesday 17 Jul 2024, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

• Discuss our outlook for the rest of the year
• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios
• Review of performance during Q2 2024
• Review of changes made to the portfolios
• Go through company case studies
• Share the latest developments in terms of proposition and sustainability

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 15 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

EQ Sustainability & Investment update – Q1 2024

Tuesday 23 Apr 2024, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

• Discuss our outlook for the rest of the year
• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios
• Review of performance during Q1 2024
• Review of changes made to the portfolios
• Go through company case studies
• Share the latest developments in terms of proposition and sustainability

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 15 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

Catering for sustainable clients in the age of Consumer Duty

Tuesday 27 Feb 2024, 11:00 am – 12:00 am

On of the mandatory aspects of Consumer Duty is the consideration of clients’ attitude to sustainable investments.

In our latest webinar, we’ll be joined by Lee Coates, Co-founder of ESG Accord. Lee will introduce the regulatory requirements as they apply to financial advisers in the UK and provide an oversight of what these mean for your client suitability processes and investment choice.

Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability at EQ Investors will then explore the practical ways EQ’s product & service proposition helps you meet your Consumer Duty requirements. This includes fit-for-purpose products, fair value, enabled consumer understanding and client support.

The webinar will help you towards delivering good client outcomes, across financial and sustainable objectives. We will allocate 15-minutes for questions at the end.

Agenda:

• Introduction
• The implications of consumer duty on advisers: a focus on sustainability suitability – Lee Coates, ESG Accord
• How EQ’s products/services help advisers meet consumer duty requirements – Louisiana Salge, EQ Investors
• Interactive Q&A

EQ Sustainability & Investment update – Q4 2023

Thursday 18 Jan 2024, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

• Discuss our outlook for the year ahead
• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios
• Review of performance during Q4 2023
• Review of changes made to the portfolios
• Go through company case studies
• Share the latest developments in terms of proposition and sustainability

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 20 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

Launching our Positive Impact Report for 2023 | Shifting the dial on the Sustainable Development Goals

Tuesday 7 Nov 2023, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm

We are pleased to invite you to the launch of the 2023 Positive Impact Report. Now in its seventh edition, our yearly Impact Report aims to bring to life the social and environmental impacts associated with the investments and engagements made on behalf of our clients in the EQ Positive Impact strategy.

With only seven years left to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the promise of the 2030 agenda is, in peril. The EQ Positive Impact strategy is committed to shifting the dial.

In this webinar the EQ Investors team will share key findings from our impact measurement project and detail the difference our active stewardship has made over the past year, including our work on climate change and biodiversity risk.

You will also hear directly from Tammie Tang, fund manager of the CT UK Social Bond fund. She will showcase how your capital can help solve social inequality issues in the UK, while also meeting your financial objectives.

The topics covered will be the following:

• Summary of the objectives of the EQ Positive Impact Portfolios
• Key findings from the EQ Positive Impact Report 2023
• What is additionality? Bringing to life CT UK Social Bond fund, with fund manager Tammie Tang
• The importance of our engagement in shifting the dial
• Q&A

Your speakers will be:

• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability, EQ Investors
• Johnny Bowie, Sustainability analyst, EQ Investors
• Tammie Tang, Senior Portfolio Manager, Columbia Threadneedle

This webinar is suitable for retail clients and financial advisers.

EQ Portfolio Comparison Webinar

Tuesday 8 Aug 2023, 11:00 am – 12:00 am

We are pleased to invite you to our upcoming portfolio comparison webinar. We will be looking at the key characteristics of our three investment strategies – Positive Impact, Future Leaders & Climate Action.

Join Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing, Louisiana Salge, Head of Sustainability and Matt Hardy, Business Development Manager as we introduce the EQ Positive Impact, Future Leaders and Climate Action Portfolios. We will also help you understand the key differences between the three propositions and how to position them within your CIP.

The topics covered will include the following:

• Why choose EQ?
• The investment case for sustainable investing
• The regulatory backdrop
• Introduction to all three portfolio strategies

The webinar will last one hour including 20 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

EQ Investors: Annual Sustainability Summit

Thursday 16 Nov 2023, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

We are pleased to announce that our 2023 adviser conference will be held on Thursday, 16th November in London. The ambition of our annual conferences is to bring sustainable investing to life, discussing both the challenges and opportunities, with an emphasis on making the takeaways relevant for you and your clients. 

The focus for this year’s event will be climate change, through the lens of all our investment strategies. You will get the opportunity to meet, and hear from a wide range of speakers including the EQ Investment team, fund managers, sustainable companies and environmental charities. You can reserve your place by registering below.

This conference is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners and accounts for 3 hours of CPD.

Celebrating the 3 year anniversary of the launch of the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios

Tuesday 21 Mar 2023, 12:00 am – 1:20 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

– Introduction to the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios
– Can sustainable passive investing be credible? Review of the evolution of the proposition since launch
– Can sustainable passive investing perform? Review of performance since launch
– What’s ahead for the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios

Your speakers will be:

• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors
• Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Matt Hardy, Business Development Manager, EQ Investors
• Johnny Bowie, Sustainability Analyst, EQ Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 20 min for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Note: This webinar is aimed at professional financial advisers and paraplanners only. CPD forms available upon request.

Climate Change – As a financial adviser, are you ready to embrace this new challenge?

Thursday 24 Nov 2022, 12:00 am – 1:20 pm

The topics covered will be the following:

– Introduction to the Climate Challenge
– How to build a portfolio that can weather the climate crisis?
– How can engagement be successful in accelerating the transition to net zero?
– What changes might be incurred in financial planning by climate change?
– Are cash flow modelling assumptions used by advisers fit for purpose in this new environment?

Your speakers will be:

– Damien Lardoux, CFA, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
– Sebastian Elwell, Director, SwitchFoot Wealth & Advisory Board Member at Society of Later Life Advisers
– Rick Stathers, Climate Change Specialist, Aviva Investors

The webinar will last one hour including 20 minutes for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Investing with impact in an energy crisis | EQ Positive impact report launch webinar

Tuesday 18 Oct 2022, 12:00 am – 1:20 pm

Please join us to celebrate the launch of our sixth annual EQ Positive impact report.

This webinar focuses on how we can invest to solve the long term UN Sustainable Development Goals, while alleviating current challenges such as the energy crisis.

We are delighted to be joined by Aldo Beolchini, CFO at Next Energy Capital. As our guest speaker, he will bring an expert perspective on renewable energy, and running a sustainable solar company through the energy crisis.

We will also explore the key findings from the new EQ Positive Impact report, and demonstrate your investments’ impact achievements in the last year.

Agenda:
– Findings from the EQ Positive Impact Report 2022 (Louisiana Salge, Senior Sustainability Specialist, EQ)
– What role can renewable energy play in the current energy crisis? (Damien Lardoux, Portfolio Manager and Head of Impact Investing, EQ)
– Case study on Next Energy Solar Fund, operator of 100 solar farms across the UK (Aldo Beolchini, Managing Partner and CIO, Next Energy Capital)
– Q&A from audience

The webinar will last one hour including 20 minutes for Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

EQ Bespoke Portfolios: How we achieve deep impact in an inflationary environment

Thursday 26 May 2022, 10:00 am – 11:00 am

Our bespoke service allows us to invest directly in listed investment funds, from social housing through to infrastructure and social outcomes contracts. Many of these offer direct inflation linked returns, which provide diversification, without relying solely on bonds. They are also deeply impactful and, in many cases, providing capital directly to tackle societies challenges.

In this webinar we explore how we can manage portfolios for your key clients, meeting and exceeding their expectations for social and environmental impact, while generating attractive returns from a range of alternative investments, and managing other key planning targets such as capital gains.

Your speakers will be:
• Daniel Bland, Head of Sustainable Investment Management, EQ Investors
• Luke Powell, Head of Sales (Investments), EQ Investors

Future Leaders Portfolios Anniversary – 2 years on

Wednesday 16 Mar 2022, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

Join Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing, Matt Hardy, Business Development Manager, Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager and Louisiana Salge, Senior Sustainability Specialist as we look at portfolio construction, diving deeper into our sustainability process and sharing our thoughts on what’s next for the Future Leaders strategy.

The topics covered will include the following:

• Recap of the EQ Future Leaders Portfolios
• Sustainability Process
• Performance Review of EQ Future Leaders
• Our thoughts on the future of the portfolios

The webinar will last 1 hour including a 15-20 minute Q&A at the end and will qualify for 1 hr of CPD.

What are the key themes for sustainable investors in 2022?

Thursday 3 Feb 2022, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

In this webinar, we will be discussing the key themes for sustainable investors in 2022.

The topics covered will be the following:

• What are likely to be the key themes in 2022?
• Climate Transition – The elephant in the room?
• Quick introduction to the EQ Positive Impact and Future Leaders Portfolios

Your speakers will be:

• Matt Hardy, Business Development Manager
• Louisiana Salge, Senior Sustainability Specialist
• Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing

The webinar will last 40 minutes with a 10/15 minute Q&A section towards the end.

Meeting unmet needs in emerging markets

Thursday 21 Oct 2021, 3:00 pm

Launch of 2021 Annual Impact Report for the EQ Positive Impact Portfolios (II)

This webinar focuses on how we invest to solve unmet needs in emerging markets – one of the key challenges defined by the UN Development Goals. We are joined by Tim Crockford, Head of Impact Equity Solutions at Regnan, who brings us unique insights from managing high impact investments. We also hear from the innovative Brazilian medical education company Afya, demonstrating how they tackle local unmet needs through their mission-driven business model and digital solutions.

We also present key findings from the 4th edition of our flagship impact report. This includes impact measurements on social outcomes, and engagement achievements that created sustainable change over the past year.

Agenda:
1. Key highlights from the new impact report
2. Solving unmet needs in emerging markets
3. Company case study: Afya
4. Q&A

The webinar lasts for 1 hour with a 15–20-minute Q&A section towards the end.

Download the slides

Build back better: the UK’s sustainable future

Thursday 14 Oct 2021, 3:00 pm

Launch of 2021 Annual Impact Report for the EQ Positive Impact Portfolios (I)

This webinar focuses on the opportunities that can be harnessed as a result of the pandemic here in the UK. We’re joined by Matt Evans of Ninety One Asset Management to discuss his approach, and hear directly from Smart Metering Systems and The Gym Group about what the last eighteen months have meant for their mission-driven businesses, and how they can play a significant role in rebuilding better.

We also present key findings from the 4th edition of our flagship impact report. This includes impact measurements, carbon analysis, and shows how well the portfolios are placed to benefit from a green recovery.

Agenda:
1. Key highlights from the new impact report
2. Sustainable investing in a pandemic
3. 1st company case study: The Gym Group
4. 2nd company case study: Smart Metering Systems
5. Q&A

The webinar lasts for 1 hour and 20 minutes with a 15–20-minute Q&A section towards the end.

Download the slides

Climate Change: the risk of doing nothing

Thursday 16 Sep 2021, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

COP26, the upcoming global climate change conference, will likely showcase governments taking ambitious steps to reduce carbon emissions. Carbon regulation, litigation, growing public pressure and technological innovation pose existential risks to carbon, and those businesses polluting most.

In this inevitable carbon crisis, decarbonisation is the only way forward. In this webinar we discuss how your clients’ wealth may be at risk if they continue to invest in portfolios lagging behind the transition; but also the opportunities and the investment case for companies leading the charge…

Agenda:

1. Countdown to COP26 – Setting the scene of COP26, the risk of climate change and anticipated impacts on the global economy
2. Carbon – Why should you care?
   • Carbon risk – Discussing carbon emissions and carbon risk management in portfolios
   • Climate Change Solutions – Discussing the solutions to climate change and the long-term investment opportunity they represent
   • Transition Companies – Discussing examples of companies aligning their business model to a low-carbon future vs companies potentially greenwashing.
3. Can investing for a low carbon world help your clients generate good returns? What are the evidences?

Speakers:

• Louisiana Salge, Senior Sustainability Specialist, EQ Investors
• Tertius Bonnin, Assistant Portfolio Manager, EQ Investors
• Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Matt Hardy, Business Development Manager

The webinar lasts for one hour, including a 20 min Q&A session at the end.

Introducing EQ Bespoke

Wednesday 9 Jun 2021, 11:00 am

Our Bespoke Discretionary Fund Management (DFM) service is designed for situations when a more personalised service is required to create the best outcomes for clients and advisers.

In this 30 minute video, Daniel Bland, Head of Sustainable Investment Management at EQ Investors, introduces the EQ Bespoke service using case studies – highlighting how we use our impact data and experience in building and managing sustainable investment strategies to solve common portfolio challenges.

Download the slides

Cutting through the noise: sustainable investing with EQ Investors

Thursday 13 May 2021, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Sustainable investing is increasingly moving into the mainstream and more retail clients are asking difficult questions. This webinar aims to give you confidence in navigating the increasingly crowded sustainable investment space, allowing you to proactively approach the subject with clients.

We cover the different approaches to sustainable investing, expose the misconceptions around sacrificing financial returns and share tips on how to conduct due diligence to ensure you find the best investment managers/DFMs for the job.

The topics covered are:

• Sustainable investing: Differentiating ethical, ESG, and impact investing
• The performance case for sustainable investing
• How to build a sustainable Central Investment Proposition ? Our tips for your due diligence
• How should I approach the subject with my clients?

Speakers:

• Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing, EQ Investors
• Louisiana Salge, Senior Sustainability Specialist, EQ Investors