Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is 💸 ➡️❤️

The real estate sector is one of the highest Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emitting sectors, contributing to almost 40% of the annual global GHG emissions and consuming approximately one-third of global energy. 😱 What makes this sector so energy intensive? How much of this consumption comes from fossil fuel? Why is it necessary to promote energy efficiency in commercial and residential buildings?

One-third of global energy consumption is used by the real estate sector, one of the highest 📈 

Greenhouse Gas emitters. Because fossil fuels are still a large part of the energy mix of real estate, it is still considered energy inefficient. 👎 

But why is it necessary to regulate these companies in real estate that are involved in the extraction, storage, transport or manufacture of fossil fuels? 🤔

Human rights are one of the crucial aspects of development. 

But still, we come across news of human rights or social violations-in both developed and developing countries. 

Are there international laws to prevent these social violations by countries? 

And if yes, why are they not being followed? 🤨 

Let’s understand why some social factors are more important in ranking a country. 👇

Can focusing on reducing emissions lead to sustainable countries? 🌱 

Or we need to focus on GHG intensity too. What is the emissions intensity and why is it crucial to measure GHG intensity of investee countries your portfolio is exposed to? 

Let’s understand the concept of GHG intensity for the investee countries. 💪

The controversial weapons or arms are the weapons other than mass destruction or nuclear weapons. In the background of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the damages caused by these weapons have again become a matter of public debate 📣. 

So what are these conventional weapons? 

How are they a threat to a sustainable society? 

And why were controversial weapons used as one of the disclosure requirements for the financial services sector in the recently introduced SFDR (Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation)?

Let’s find out 💁‍♀️👇

Does it make a difference whether a woman is working as a Secretary 👩🏽‍💻 or as CEO 👩🏼‍💼 of a company?👀

Well, it does.

Business houses as a part of society could play a significant role in increasing gender equality. Companies or corporations are working in many spheres to show that they believe in the principle of equal rights for both men and women. ✅ 

One way to do this is ensuring gender equality at the top or board level. Corporate governance (meaning the way a company is governed or managed) and board gender diversity could help in measuring the actual level of women's participation in the workplace at the decision-making level.

Let’s understand what board gender diversity is, and why it is important. 

What are some of the efforts taken by companies and the government to ensure its implementation?🚀

Let's take it one by one.

‘Equal pay for equal work’ is the basic principle which regulates the wage structure. This means that both men and women should get equal pay for equal work in a work situation in the absence of any other justifiable reason.👏 

However in reality, differences exist at ground level in almost all spheres be it a family, a business entity or in society in general.😐 

When this difference in pay occurs just because a person is a male or a female, it leads to gender pay-gap.

The United Nations Global Compact or for short UNGC is a voluntary effort at the global level to support MNCs or multi-national companies (the companies that have business in many countries) that are committed to sustainable practices in areas such as the environment, labor rights, or corruption. 🙌 

Let’s find out why this is so important, how UNGC monitors MNCs and why it is in news in the EU. 💪

The United Nations Global Compact or for short UNGC is a voluntary effort at the global level to support MNCs or multi-national companies (the companies that have business in many countries) that are committed to sustainable practices in areas such as the environment, labor rights, or corruption. 🙌

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is another global organization that is working in partnership with UNGC in the above direction. Let’s understand why this is so important, what are the violations of UNGC by MNCs and why it is happening in the EU. 💪

Waste is generated due to many human activities. In fact, in a recent tweet by Eurostat, a whopping 5.2 tonnes of waste was generated by EU inhabitants in 2018. 😱 

So, what is being done at the individual level and at the society level? 

What steps is the government taking to recycle and reduce this waste? And what do we call a hazardous waste?

Let’s find out together! 💪

We all know that water is vital for survival of human species,  just to give you an overview: an average human body consists of 61% water and the earth contains 71% water.💧

Now, only 40% of Europe’s surface water bodies (meaning rivers and lakes) show good ecological status. 😧 Different human activities, from their daily routines to complex nuclear reactors are negatively impacting the water sources and reservoirs. 

This is happening throughout the globe even in the isolated land of Antarctica. So what measures are being taken by the government or the companies that are causing this? Can we as investors stop it? Let’s understand what emission to water is and how it is regulated in world politics. 🤓

Are we, human beings, the sole inhabitants of this planet?

Of course we’re not, duh. 🙄 Although let’s be honest, we’re sometimes acting like we are. 😅 In reality, we are surrounded by other living beings and a complex intertwined biosystem. This diversity of life on earth is also known as biodiversity and we, as inhabitants of the Earth, are impacting it by our day to day activities.🌱

Have you thought about the percentage of non-renewable sources of energy consumption and production to renewable sources in the companies you are investing in? What are renewable energy sources and why are they called alternative sources of energy? And why does Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation talk about them as one of the Principal Adverse Impacts? 🤔

Let’s start the ride to understanding these concepts and their importance in your impact investing journey. 🚀

Fossil fuels (non-renewable sources of energy) are responsible for two-thirds of emissions in the last twenty years. In the European Union also, almost 70% of the energy comes from fossil fuel (petroleum products- 35%, natural gas- 24%, solid fossil fuel- 12%). Moreover, non-renewable sources like coal, natural gas, oil and nuclear energy cannot replenish themselves, hence their consumption and production are limited in supply. 🙅‍♂️ Unfortunately, we are still dependent on these energy sources in our daily lives. 😕 Have you thought about how much percentage of non-renewable energy is in the consumption and production of your investee companies? Because the higher the percentage of renewable sources in their energy mix, the more sustainable these companies are! 💚

You must have heard a lot about companies switching towards cleaner modes of energy and calls to stop using fossil fuels to meet our energy needs.👂 What are these fossil fuels, and why are they considered bad for the environment? What is the urgency to switch to renewable sources of energy? Let's dig deeper and know more. 👇

Fossil fuels are the non-renewable source of energy which run our homes, industries, and the economy. 🏭 Coal, natural gas, and oil constitute this fossil fuel, which are carbon-based and considered a major source of Greenhouse Gas emissions. One thing to know about them is that they are not infinite, which means they will be exhausted with continuous utilization. 📉 Moreover, their usage is causing damage to the ecological system in multiple aspects. 😩

We just need to scroll through the news on our phones to see the effect of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) and the consequent climate change. 😰 This increase in the GHGs is not good for us or for the environment. But it’s not just the total amount of emissions that matters. The intensity of this emission is equally crucial to make a comparison between different entities, both at individual, societal and global levels. Let’s understand what emissions and emissions intensity are, and the importance of measuring them. ☝️

GHG Carbon footprint has been introduced as one of the PAI indicatorsunder the recently introduced Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation or SFDR.  What does it mean? How is it related to sustainability? And why do we need to measure them? 🤔

The GHG carbon footprint is used to measure total GHG emissions caused by an individual or a company. Carbon dioxide or CO2 has the major role in this emission, i.e. almost 75%, the other GHGs are methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, and perfluorocarbons. To make it simple, every GHG measurement is the equivalent of CO2. Therefore, a company's carbon footprint entails more than just burning fossil fuels. It also has the indirect emissions associated with their services and products.

GHG emissions of Greenhouse Gas Emissions is one of the most used terms in the context of climate change or global warming. 🌏 What do we mean by GHG or Greenhouse Gas? Why is it necessary to measure and reduce it? What are the efforts of governments and the private sector in this direction? 🤔 Let's understand them one by one. ☝️

The greenhouse gas effect is a natural phenomenon, but due to human activities, the rate of emissions has increased substantially in the last 50 years. 📈 This increase is not good for us or the environment. 😰 So how do we know how much GHG emissions should there be? And what do we mean by scope 1, 2 and 3? 🤷‍♂️

In recent years financial sector 🏦 involvement in sustainable development 🌱has increasingly become a central issue instead of a peripheral one. The financial institutions are making efforts at a varied level to make their financing and investment decisions sustainable. What are these players doing in order to make sustainable investing truly meaningful? Why was Sustainable Finance Disclosure regulation introduced in the EU and how can it make the journey easier for the impact investors? What is the Principal Adverse Impact in SFDR? 🤷

Let’s unravel the mystery behind them!! 🙌

A eye-levelling 👀 podcast by makeimpactabout impact investing. 

Breaking stigmas and debunking myths.  Here's why you shouldn't shy away from impact investing...

In this episode our host Jessica meet Maiken Veneman, 31, single mother and with a deep passion into sustainability and have a investing history going almost 15 years back. We dive into the stigmas on how she see sustainability and investing can be linked together and how you find your way to link them to your values. 

At makeimpact we encourage, guide and mobilize you to get started investing sustainably. Check out how, visit makeimpact.io

In this episode, out host Jessicameet Rebekka Gustafson and they discuss the freedom of impact investing and how she got started just 2 years ago from a beginner to quickly an intermediate investor! Stigmas and stereotypes are the topics of this episode and a the hot topic of this episode is about how women should and is getting started on their investing journey. 

Tune in and get inspired to take your step into the world of investing.

Get started on your impact investing journey on www.makeimpact.io 

In this episode, our host Jessica discusses with Mia about how to start investing sustainable, one of the concerns of new generations. 

They describe the first steps of your career as a sustainable investor and how the MakeImpact app can help you in this process.

If you are interested on the app, go to https://makeimpact.io/ and start your journey!