Helping Donors Learn the Climate Investing ABCs

The newest report from the UN’s IPCC Working Group, released in late February 2022, has issued a dire call to action for the global community regarding climate change. The report states that the planet has already warmed by 1.1 degrees C, and that the widespread disruption of climate change is showing in every region around the world. Drought, floods, and extreme heat are exacerbating issues like water and food insecurity, wildfires, diseases, and ecosystem destruction. If we want to mitigate the worst effects, we need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C—which means globally, we need to significantly decrease emissions by 2030. That’s a mere eight years from now. Based on this data, it’s clear that the planet needs us, and we’re running out of time.

As individuals, it is hard to grasp what we alone can do to help tackle the enormity of the challenge that lies ahead. The tools any one person has—such as buying local produce, installing solar panels and recycling—can only make a significant difference when performed by millions or billions of people.

But as donors and investors we have a bigger, and arguably more effective, tool at our disposal: charitable capital. Philanthropists who use donor-advised funds (DAFs) have a special opportunity to guide their dollars towards funding climate solutions. That money can then be granted out of the DAF to nonprofit organizations working in the same area, potentially multiplying the impact of the dollars. Currently, only about 3% of all U.S. charitable donations go toward environmental causes. It’s likely an even smaller percentage of that number is specifically dedicated to climate change mitigation, as the category contains a broad definition of environmental and animal-welfare related work. In the broad investment landscape, the average yearly investment in climate is $632 billion—which sounds like a big number until you compare it to what we need each year to hit our targets: $4.13 trillion. That’s a $3.5 billion gap. If we want to seriously address the climate crisis, these numbers need to grow significantly.

Charitable capital is an ideal source of potential funding for a new wave of social entrepreneurs and fund managers who are currently seeking money to build renewable energy grids, restore critical ecosystems, develop technology to pull carbon out of the air, and address the social inequities that a changing climate may exacerbate.

Here at CapShift, we’re in the business of helping individuals and families incorporate impact investments into their charitable portfolios. Climate-focused investments are made with the intention to mitigate climate change, build resiliency to the effects of climate change, and position a portfolio to protect against climate risks and take advantage of climate opportunities.

In working with DAF providers and donors who are committed to investing in climate solutions, we’ve identified three common approaches they can build into their portfolios, which we call the ABCs of climate investing.

• Align. A common starting point for many individuals and families is to integrate climate goals into their liquid, diversified, publicly traded portfolios. It includes strategies such as divesting from fossil fuel companies, investing in companies with thoughtful and measurable climate practices, and/or engaging with portfolio companies to advocate for environmental policies. Opportunities that move the needle in this category include climate-focused shareholder engagement and new green bond issuances.
• Build. Donors and Investors can also develop, build, and deploy climate solutions directly through private investments targeting market-rate returns. These solutions span asset classes and impact areas, ranging from climate-resilient infrastructure to agriculture technology to sustainable forestry.
• Catalyze. Finally, the most impact-minded donors and investors can recommend solutions that otherwise would not be broadly supported by return-maximizing investors. These investments tend to feature higher risks or lower returns than the market can bear, and include solutions such as loans to climate refugees, pre-seed clean technology innovations and clean water infrastructure.

These strategies can be incorporated independently or they can work in concert to form a 100% climate-aligned portfolio tailored to meet an individual or families’ unique goals. We recently published a climate investing primer, which includes more details on this framework and how families can use it to start their climate investing journey today.

We have an immense opportunity to use the charitable assets invested in DAFs to help turn the tide on the climate crisis. CapShift and NPT are aligned and ready to help donors meet the urgency of the moment. You can read more about NPT’s donor-advised funds and how to get started with climate-based impact investing here.

About CapShift

CapShift partners with National Philanthropic Trust to help donors align their donor advised funds’ investments with their values to create meaningful impact from the moment capital is donated until it reaches their preferred nonprofit.

This information does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any security. Any such offer or solicitation would only be made pursuant to an offering memorandum or prospectus. All investments entail a high degree of risk and no assurance can be given that the investment objective will be achieved or that investors will receive a return of their capital. Information presented is for illustrative purposes only. Opportunities may not be suitable for all investors due to differences in risk tolerance, investor status, and investment time horizons, amongst other factors. Additionally, investments may not achieve stated social, environmental, or similar objectives. The statements expressed here represent the author’s opinion at the time of publication and may change without notice. Further, the information in the document has been printed on the basis of publicly available information; internal data and other sources believed to be true and are for general guidance only but which may have not been verified independently. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of information contained, the company takes no responsibility and assumes no liability for any error/ omission or accuracy of the information. Recipients of this material should rely on their own judgments and conclusions from relevant sources before making any investment.

NPT does not provide legal or tax advice. This blog post is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be, and shall not be relied upon as, legal or tax advice. The applicability of information contained here may vary depending on individual circumstances.

The views and opinions expressed in this guest blog are solely attributable to Capshift.