Events & News

Australia’s largest peak bodies representing private land conservation and responsible financial investment have teamed up to send a message to the Federal Parliament: now is the time to do a deal on Australia’s nature laws that delivers investment certainty and outcomes for nature. Together, we welcome the report of the Senate Inquiry into the Government’s Nature Positive Bills and support the committee’s recommendation that the legislation be amended to allow for National Environmental Standards to be issued by the Government, and to ensure that the definition for ‘nature positive’ is consistent with international expectations. Australia’s largest peak bodies representing private land conservation and responsible financial investment have teamed up to send a message to the Federal Parliament: now is the time to do a deal on Australia’s nature laws that delivers investment certainty and outcomes for nature. Together, we welcome the report of the Senate Inquiry into the Government’s Nature Positive Bills and support the committee’s recommendation that the legislation be amended to allow for National Environmental Standards to be issued by the Government, and to ensure that the definition for ‘nature positive’ is consistent with international expectations. The Responsible Investment Association Australia (RIAA) and the Australian Land Conservation Alliance (ALCA) recognise the importance of robust environmental law reforms for protecting Australia’s biodiversity, and the need to provide investor and project proponents with more certainty and consistency.

On 19 September at the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA)’s annual conference in New Zealand, I have the wonderful privilege of moderating a panel of three CEOs from prominent New Zealand listed companies: Simon MacKenzie (Vector), Jolie Hodson (Spark), and Grant Webster (THL Holdings). We are going to be talking about what it takes to lead an organisation in a world that needs to transition to a low carbon, sustainability focused economy. While generally society understands and broadly agrees on the importance of this transition and the need to separate emissions growth with business growth, it is by no means an easy feat to achieve – especially while economic conditions are tough.

The Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA), representing 75% of managed funds in Australia, has warmly welcomed the passing of the legislation to enact mandatory reporting on climate by Australian businesses. RIAA has long campaigned for a mandatory climate-related disclosure regime in Australia. Clear and comparable disclosure of climate-related financial information will help investors identify and understand the large-scale financial risks from the impacts of climate change and transition to net zero emissions. It will also encourage action to mitigate these risks. By incentivising high quality, useful and internationally aligned climate-related disclosures, this Act will help maintain Australia’s place in the global economy.

Draft guidance by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to clarify how the Australian Competition Law interacts with collaborations related to sustainability.

The NZ Government’s second emissions reduction plan (ERP2), a strategy to reduce emissions in New Zealand during the second emissions budget period (2026 – 2030).

Proposed guidance by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) on references to climate statements in disclosure documents, such as product disclosure statements (PDS).

The Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) and Mindful Money are pleased to launch the 2024 consumer report, Voices of Aotearoa: Demand for Ethical Investment in New Zealand. The study reveals that more Kiwis support responsible investing than ever before, showing a strong preference for aligning investments with personal values and long-term sustainability. Key findings include: • 77% of New Zealanders expect their investments to be managed ethically. 57% would consider switching to a different provider if their investments were in activities not consistent with their values. • More respondents expect ethical and responsible investments to perform better in the long term, increasing to 46%. • There is growing support for investing for positive impact. 54% would invest in a fund that aims to create positive impact if the returns are comparable to investment benchmarks while 20% would accept a lower return. • Positive views about responsible investment are more strongly held by Gen Z and Millennials, those with higher levels of education and those with higher levels of investment. • Over half of New Zealanders have concerns about greenwashing. 59% are more likely to choose ethical and responsible funds that have independent certification.

RIAA warmly welcomes the development of the Australian Taxonomy and is pleased to see the project reach this important milestone, and the strong support from the Australian Government for this important project.

People with superannuation accounts or investment portfolios have immense power. With substantial amounts of money invested – such as the $4 trillion in Australia’s superannuation funds (the 5th largest pool of pension assets in the world), consumers are in the driver’s seat when it comes to the allocation of that money to different industries and companies. Our research shows that 88% of Australians expect their super and banking to be invested responsibly and ethically. Similarly in Aotearoa New Zealand, 74% expect responsible and ethical management of their investments, and 59% are willing to move their funds if their investments do not align with their values.

This FAQ page aims to answer common questions about our certification and how consumers can be better informed when starting their ethical investment journey.