New Book Takes On Some of the Biggest Questions in Sustainable Investment

Does sustainable investment deliver better financial outcomes? Or lead to meaningful real-world change? Is there evidence that responsible investment drives improved sustainability performance? A new book from Chronos CEO Rory Sullivan and LSE Associate Professor Richard Perkins addresses the ‘Key Debates in Sustainable Investment’.

In the twenty years since the Principles for Responsible Investment were signed, sustainability-related issues and strategies have become part of the mainstream of investment practice. Many leading investment institutions, including asset managers, pension funds and insurance companies, have now made commitments to sustainable investment or to the delivery of sustainability goals alongside their investment objectives. This mainstreaming of sustainable investment raises many important questions, such as:

• Does sustainable investment lead to meaningful real-world change?

• Does sustainable investment deliver better financial outcomes?

• Is sustainable investment consistent with investors’ fiduciary duties?

• Does sustainability information drive improved sustainability performance?

Key Debates in Sustainable Investment - the new book from Rory Sullivan (CEO of Chronos Sustainability and Visiting Professor in Practice in the Department of Geography and Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)) and Richard Perkins (Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and Environment at the LSE) unpacks these questions. The book includes contributions from AP7, BNP Paribas Asset Management, CCLA Investment Management, Standard Life, The Transition Pathway Initiative and UNFCCC.

The book examines sustainable investment in terms of its stated objectives and in terms of the outcomes that are actually delivered. It demonstrates the contribution that investors have made in influencing the practices and performance of corporate and sovereign investors, the financial relevance of environmental, social and governance issues to investors, and the financial, legal and commercial arguments for investors to take account of these issues in their investment practices and processes.

It also highlights the challenges and realities of sustainable investment, including perverse incentives, short investment timeframes and the legal impediments to action. In doing so, it allows policymakers, financial institutions, companies, civil society organisations and academics to engage in a more informed discussion about the contribution that sustainable investment can make to sustainability goals.

The book is available here, or contact our CEO Dr. Rory Sullivan for more.

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NOTES

1.         Key Debates in Sustainable Investment, edited by Dr Rory Sullivan and Dr Richard Perkins, is available at https://www.routledge.com/Key-Debates-in-Sustainable-Investment/Sullivan-Perkins/p/book/9781032730233

2.         The book forms part of a wider partnership between Chronos Sustainability and LSE to support and inspire the next generation of sustainable finance professionals. Its activities to date have included:

·       Publication of the Chronos Sustainability Sustainable Finance Careers Guide (in 2024) and the Guide to Careers in Sustainability Consultancy(in 2025). 

·       Providing work experience and internships at Chronos to undergraduate and postgraduate students.

·       The establishment of the Chronos Sustainability Prize at The London School of Economics.

·       Read more about Chronos’ wider positive contributions here

3.         The book chapters and contributors are:

1. Introduction - Rory Sullivan and Richard Perkins

2. Key Actors and Their Roles in the Investment System -Cora Buentjen, Fatima Husain and Chup Priovashini

3. Key Concepts in Sustainable Investment - Cora Buentjen, Fatima Husain, Chup Priovashini and Robert Black

4. Why Do We Disagree about Sustainable Finance? - Richard Perkins and Krista Tukiainen

5. Is Sustainable Finance Consistent with Fiduciary Duty? - Rory Sullivan

6. Does Sustainable Investment Deliver Better Financial Outcomes? - Kester Low, Yuqi Wang, and Kushal Shah

7. Do Sustainable Finance Investing Strategies Lead to Better Sustainability Outcomes? - Cecilia Meinardi, Arjun Sanghera, Nora Venin and James Corah

8. Are Public and Private Finance Delivering on the Goals of the Paris Agreement? - Amy Cano Prentice, Meutia Riana Sukma, Ferth Vandensteen Manaysay, Hao Zhong, and Padraig Oliver

9. Do Better Company Disclosures Lead to Better Environmental Performance? - Emma De Fino, Emeline Warner and Rachel Crossley

10. What Is the Value of Collective Action in Sustainable Finance? - Tristan Gilet, Krishnapriya J, Himanshu Pabreja and Valeria Piani

11. Can the Financial Sector Be Trusted? Greenwashing, Greenhushing, and Greenwishing - Noga Natanson, Hilary Lai, Sumira Bothe, and Johan Floren

12. Can the Information Provided by Data and Ratings Providers Be Relied Upon? - Claudio Cichi, Aine O’Dea, Duo Xu and Valentin Jahn

13. Assessing the Effectiveness of Sustainable Investment in the Global: South Gaps, Contestations and Ways Forward - Abi Perriman, Dido Gompertz and Jisoo You

14. Building a More Sustainable Investment System - Rory Sullivan and Richard Perkins