What is green investment?

Put simply, green investment engages companies, projects or funds that are focused on environmental issues so as to leave a positive, green stamp on the planet.

We appreciate that the financial services space can sometimes be confusing, dull or both. To that end, our new series of “What is …” features will cover everything you need to know in a way that won’t make your head spin but will hopefully make you think and investigate.

We begin with green investment. The term may sound simple, and in reality, that’s because it is.

The “green” in green investment essentially means the environment. It covers investing in companies that don’t eat up the planet’s precious natural resources at a rate of knots, in research projects that are striving to find new, alternate, and most importantly, clean sources of energy, and in funds that carefully select their portfolios based on a number of positive or negative screening criteria.

And those are just three examples.

Green investing, or environmental investing, is a relatively new idea, but the sector has been propelled forward in the past decade to become one of the most exciting areas around.

Companies in the space all share the same underlying goal: to preserve our planet. They leave their mark, not their footprint.

And innovation is plentiful. By becoming a green investor, you’ll be mixing with some of the most entrepreneurial minds on the planet, and ultimately, the people and companies at the forefront of economic prosperity in the sustainable future we must strive for.

Beware, though; some investments are greener than others, so it’s always wise to do research or seek advice before making any commitments. Ask your IFA what they recommend in the green space. If they can’t answer, you may need the help of a specialist. Fill in our online form and we’ll connect you.

B&GT recently profiled the Quadris Environmental Fund – a vehicle that solely invests in a sustainable Brazilian teak plantation, and the Legal & General Global Environmental Enterprises Fund, which looks to reap the benefits of the ever-increasing need to adapt to climate change. Both of those funds might be of interest to a green investor, but there are obviously plenty of other options available.

Prominent environmentalist David Brower, who founded such organisations as the Sierra Club Foundation and Friends of the Earth, once said, “There’s no business to be done on a dead planet” – a sentiment echoed by the environmental entrepreneur, Ben Goldsmith.

That single, simple sentence should be ample to set your synapses firing about green investment. But if you want learn more about green investment and what options are available, download our new 2012 Guide to Sustainable Investment.

Further reading:

Guide to Sustainable Investment

Invest ethically, reap prosperity