Franklin Templeton Signs on to Ceres Valuing Water Finance Initiative
Franklin Templeton became one of the 64 institutional investors representing $9.8 trillion in AUM that have signed on to the Valuing Water Finance Initiative from Ceres. It’s a new investor-led effort to engage 72 of the world’s biggest corporate water users and polluters to value and act on water as a financial risk and drive change to better protect water systems.
Water is a major systemic risk and challenge that is facing institutional investors and financial institutions worldwide. Water is a unique resource that underpins all drivers of economic growth - food production, energy generation, industrial activities, human health and political stability. Yet water is chronically mismanaged in much of the world, and the accelerating physical impacts of climate change are making water supplies increasingly unstable. Investors and many financial institutions with exposure to most large industries and many global regions face potentially large and often unrecognized water risks.
Anne Simpson, Ceres Board Member and Global Head of Sustainability at Franklin Templeton said: “The world’s fresh water supply is under severe stress in all regions, which poses risks not just to local communities, but also to those companies reliant upon water across their value chains. Investors have a critical role to play in helping companies assess those risks, and to respond to the opportunities ahead as we build resilience to climate change. The Valuing Water Finance Initiative reflects investors’ fiduciary duty to generate sustainable risk adjusted returns on behalf of the millions of people who rely upon those investments for their financial security. Benjamin Franklin wisely commented that ‘when the well is dry, we know the worth of water.’ We are perilously close to that point and as fiduciaries must act.”
This initiative builds on previous water research and resources developed by the Ceres Water Program and Investor Water Hub and other critical stakeholders and uses the UN Valuing Water Principles as guideposts.
About Ceres
Ceres is a nonprofit organization working with the most influential capital market leaders to solve the world’s greatest sustainability challenges. Through our powerful networks and global collaborations of investors, companies, and nonprofits, we drive action and inspire equitable market-based and policy solutions throughout the economy to build a just and sustainable future. For more information, visit ceres.org and follow @CeresNews.
About Franklin Templeton
Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 155 countries. Franklin Templeton’s mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company offers boutique specialization on a global scale, bringing extensive capabilities in fixed income, equity, alternatives, and multi-asset solutions. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has 75 years of investment experience and approximately $1.4 trillion in assets under management as of July 31, 2022. For more information, please visit www.franklintempleton.com.
