sustainability

OVERVIEW

Since Stoneshield’s inception in 2018, responsible ownership has been a key priority of the Firm. As a medium to long-term investor, we are optimally positioned to make an impact on corporate behaviour.

At a time when typical investment holding periods are relatively short, Stoneshield’s long-term orientation and aim to support companies throughout market cycles provide us great credibility and influence to the management of the underlying companies or businesses.

Stoneshield believes that ESG can have a material impact on long-term investment outcomes. Our goal is to achieve the best possible risk-adjusted returns for our clients, taking into account all factors that influence investment performance.

Our approach to ESG is based on the following principles

Mitigate the impact of our operations on the environment.

We strive to mitigate the impact of our operations on the environment as we understand that most of our operations, businesses and assets are both impacted by and have an impact on the environment, including climate change. We believe, to address climate change, the world will have to transition to a net zero-carbon economy. We are proactively evolving our portfolio of investments consistent with this imperative.

Development, Well-being, and health and safety of our employees.

We strive to ensure the development, well-being, and health and safety of our employees. Our people must succeed for us to succeed. We place a high priority on creating a safe and inclusive work environment, which supports development of potential and personal growth. This is reflected in our human capital policies and processes and extends to the health and safety practices within our portfolio companies.

ESG in Practice

We have embedded our core ESG principles in all activities directly undertaken across the Firm.

This includes deploying our operating capabilities in ensuring that our investment and portfolio oversight activities address ESG considerations, that our governance and compliance activities are effective throughout the Firm, that we provide information on ESG activities to our investors, and increasingly provide investment opportunities that enable our investors to achieve their own ESG investment objectives.

Environmental excellence

Driving environmental improvements at our assets reduces operating costs, carbon emissions and the use of natural resources. This helps attract and retain occupiers and ensure that we appropriately manage environmental risk.

Socio-economic benefit

Ensuring socio-economic outcomes by being an active participant in communities. Creating high quality places, aligned with their surroundings, driving economic growth and supporting employment opportunities and skill development.

Smart and connected

In today’s digitalized world, smart and digital infrastructure is crucial to the competitiveness and success of countries, cities and buildings as well positively impacting inhabitants. Understanding the changes in connectivity and new solutions to new challenges means that we will more effectively identify investment opportunities.

ESG applied specifically to our business line:
Real Estate

Through our commitment to responsible and sustainable real estate investing and management, we seek to deliver enhanced risk-adjusted returns for our investors, become a landlord of choice and maintain our position as a practitioner of good citizenship to all our stakeholders, investors, partners, borrowers, employees, and the communities in which we reside and invest.

Ultimately all our employees are responsible for ensuring the delivery of this Policy, and its implementation is governed through our ESG Policy.

Diving into the details of our strategy

The below covers the Firm’s ESG-related activities.

In determining the most important issues to our stakeholders and the industry, we referred to the SASB Standards for Asset Managers, the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and the Global Report Initiative (GRI) UN SDGs, UN PRI and UN Global Compact, which we believe provide best practice guidance on ESG disclosures most meaningful for our business.

These three disclosure frameworks, along with input from our stakeholders, informed our views on the topics that are most important to Stoneshield. We identified 16 topics as material to the long-term success and resiliency of our businesses and have organized them for this report in four areas: Our Investments and Approach, Our People, Corporate Governance, and Our Climate.

Our investment approach

Our commitment towards making a positive impact in everything we do includes incorporating ESG factors into our investment decisions, starting with the due diligence of potential investments through to the exit process.

We tailor ESG due diligence to each investment, and we create post-investment remediation plans for material ESG considerations. For all potential investments, we use internal experts and a variety of ESG frameworks to identify material ESG factors and utilize external consultants where appropriate.

The risk management practices implemented by our third party AIFM are actively monitored by Stoneshield and complement our investment approach and explicitly include ESG-related matters. We ensure that active management of all material financial and operational risks, including ESG risks, are reflected in risk management programs of Stoneshield and our portfolio companies and are monitored as part of our overall risk management profile.

Our people

We value our people and their long-term success. Our human capital strategy is designed to support our people in working toward their potential. Key aspects of this strategy include attracting and retaining people with the capability and the drive to continue to grow, aligning their interests with those of our shareholders and investors through carefully designed compensation programs, providing stretch opportunities which fast track development where appropriate, and creating a positive, diverse and inclusive workplace that encourages and supports stepping outside one’s comfort zone and enables strong relationships.

Our approach to diversity and inclusion within the asset management business has been deliberate and integrated and has and will lead to significant progress.

Corporate Governance

We believe that strong governance is essential to sustainable business operations, and we strive to conduct our business according to the highest ethical and legal standards. Corporate governance starts at the Board level and with senior executive leadership.

Our commitment to conducting our business ethically and responsibly across the Firm, as well as within the businesses and assets that we manage, is reflected and documented in the Firm’s values, Code of Conduct, policies and processes. Our Code of Conduct and related policies are intended to ensure that Stoneshield honours its commitment to conducting business in a responsible and ethical manner.

Our Climate

We believe that the world will transition toward a net zero-carbon economy in the future.

We believe that whilst there is work to be done, we are well positioned to make this transition and are being proactive in evolving our portfolio of investments consistent with this trend.

We are actively contributing to this transition by incorporating the implications of climate change into our underwriting, focusing on assets that are essential for the economies in which we invest and will continue to be so in a net zero-carbon future, and driving operational and other efficiencies which contribute to a reduced impact on the environment

Members and supporters of

Principles for Responsible Investment

Signatory to the United Nations- supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), underscoring our ongoing commitment to responsible investment and ESG best practices.

GRESB

Anticipated filing in June 2023 to GRESB, an independent organization providing validated ESG performance data and peer benchmarks for investors and managers to improve business intelligence, industry engagement and decision-making.

Sustainability Accounting Standards Board

Supporter of SASB, whose industry-specific standards are designed to be evidence-based and market-informed, further formalizing the integration of ESG considerations into Stoneshield’s due diligence process.

Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures

Supporters of TCFD, which aims to guide companies in incorporating the considerations of the effects of climate change into business and financial decisions to help facilitate the transition to a more sustainable, lower carbon economy.

UN Global Compact

Supporter of the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.

The non-binding United Nations pact encourages businesses and firms worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation.

Sustainable Development Goals

Supporter of UN Sustainable Development Goals which provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.

Urban Land Institute

Member of ULI, the largest network of cross-disciplinary real estate and land use experts in the world whose mission is to inspire best practices for equitable and sustainable land use through content, education, convening, mentoring, and knowledge sharing.

Our Policies

Stoneshield´s Approach to Responsible investments

Code of Conduct