Pension consultants LCP has pledged to be operationally net zero from 2021.
This will be achieved through further greenhouse gas reductions while also utilising fully certified, high quality carbon offset schemes – with the aim of reducing reliance on these offsets in future.
This pledge is part of the firm’s wider commitment to helping clients, stakeholders and communities work towards a more sustainable future. This includes working with investment managers to reduce the carbon emissions on £400bn of assets that it advises on. LCP says this could have a “far greater impact” than changes made to its own operations.
LCP says the transition to low carbon and environmental resilience has been a key focus for the firm for many years, with the business introducing a number of measures, including solar panels in its offices and monitoring and reducing energy usage, business travel and waste.
The firm’s CSR team, operations team and green champions network have led initiatives to promote environmentally-friendly office practices and ensure third party relationships are as green as possible.
This has already contributed to significant reductions in both direct and indirect emissions which the firm is committing to protect and build on. LCP says that with COP26 approaching and the August 2021 IPCC report stressing the urgency of beating rather than meeting the Paris Accords it wants to minimise its environmental impact as quickly as possible.
LCP CEO Aaron Punwani says: “Setting commitments to run our business in a responsible, sustainable way, both internally and externally, is really important to us.
“It’s clear that now is the critical time for businesses to step up in achieving our UK and global climate goals. We see ourselves as part of the solution and LCP’s promise is to put sustainability at the heart of how we operate, and how we support, serve and inspire our clients.”
Kate Sinclair, partner and head of CSR adds: “We’re extremely proud of the efforts we’ve already made to ensure we are a sustainable business and reduce our environmental impact. We will continue to reduce our carbon footprint by integrating renewable energy sources into our energy mix, reducing travel, and encouraging new ways of working. We plan to reduce our reliance on offsets and are building a robust long-term roadmap to reduce our emissions.”
Alongside LCP’s net zero pledge, the firm is committed to supporting clients in their own sustainability goals. As signatories of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and the Financial Reporting Council’s UK Stewardship Code, LCP is already taking direct action in this area. The firm is working with investment managers to develop new investment products to meet climate-related and sustainable investment objectives, and played an active role in the development of guidance on climate change for UK pension scheme trustees.
Clay Lambiotte, head of investment, adds: “We recognise that our impact and responsibility extends well beyond our own business. With over £400bn in assets under advice, we have an opportunity to influence change on a much greater scale. Net Zero is ultimately about protecting everyone’s future, so working together with our clients and their investment managers is a critical part of our plan.”
