Whatever 2023 has in store, corporate winners will continue to be created by transformations in the global economy. The economic case for clean energy is more compelling than ever. Efforts to accelerate climate action highlight the need to up investments into adaptation alongside reducing emissions.  

Short-term volatility in global markets will create long-term opportunities for active investors in the new year. Closer scrutiny of sustainability claims should meanwhile strengthen demand for investment products whose authenticity can be demonstrated.

Here, we share our perspective on key themes that will shape global markets in 2023 as the transition to a more sustainable economy continues.

Executive summary

  • Innovative companies with pricing power in growing niches can shine in inflationary, higher interest rate environments
  • The renewable transition will accelerate because it offers an energy system that is cheaper, cleaner and more secure
  • Despite progress on implementing climate policies ahead of COP27, policymakers must redouble efforts to attract private capital to achieve climate goals and adapt to unavoidable impacts
  • Rising costs of living create opportunities for companies whose products and services can solve persistent social challenges
  • Greater coordination between regulators will help both companies and investors’ reporting against sustainability claims

Charles French

Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Listed Investments

Charles provides support and leadership in the development and growth of the Impax Asset Management’s listed investments business, covering research, idea generation, portfolio management, ESG integration, and trading.

Prior to joining Impax Asset Management in 2022, Charles worked at Newton Investment Management where he started out as a global financial analyst before becoming a portfolio manager and heading up Newton’s multi-asset and equity opportunities teams. He was also deputy chief investment officer, providing leadership and oversight to a global investment team.

Charles graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Nottingham. He is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAEW) in England and Wales.

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Kirsteen Morrison

Senior Portfolio Manager

Kirsteen is a member of Impax Asset Management’s portfolio management team, specialising in Financials. She has worked at Impax since 2009.

Kirsteen began her career in the investment industry in 1987, investing in Asian equities at Royal London and then at Henderson Global Investors. Kirsteen then worked for Odey Asset Management before joining JP Morgan.  

Kirsteen has an MA in Metallurgy and Science of Materials from Oxford.

Recent Insights

Additional Insights

Nathan Moser, CFA®

Senior Portfolio Manager

Nathan has been with Impax Asset Management since 2008 and in 2015 also joined the firm’s sustainable allocation portfolio management team.

He previously worked in the portfolio management team at Citizens Funds where he initially joined as an analyst. He began his investment career at John Hancock Investment Management.

Nathan is a CFA Charterholder and member of the CFA Institute. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Investment and Economics from Babson College.

Recent Insights

Chris Dodwell

Head of Policy & Advocacy

Chris is a climate change and environmental policy expert with over 25 years’ public and private sector experience. He is responsible for managing Impax’s engagement in the development of policy issues and providing insights on policy to the firm’s investment teams.

Before joining Impax in 2019 Chris worked at Ricardo Energy & Environment for eight years as Director of Climate Change, Clean Growth and Strategic Partnerships. Here he was responsible for overseeing key projects in the aforementioned areas as well as building relationships with clients in the public and financial services sectors. Prior to this he worked for 10 years at the heart of the UK Government’s work on climate change, including leading the UK’s implementation of the EU Emissions Trading System and heading the UK Delegation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Chris began his career as a solicitor at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer where he worked on a variety of civil, criminal and public law litigation relating to the impact of pollution on the environment and human health.

Chris graduated with a BA Hons in Classics from the University of Cambridge in 1990 and later went on to achieve a Master of Laws in Environmental Law from University College London in 2002.

Recent Insights

Julie Gorte, Ph.D.

Senior Vice President for Sustainable Investing

Julie is a leading figure in Impax Asset Management’s sustainable investing work, overseeing the firm’s ESG-related research on prospective and current investments, and the financial implications of integrating sustainability into investment decision-making and engagement. She also tracks and develops insights into the impact of public policy on investment. Julie is also a member of our Gender Analytics team.

Prior to joining the firm, Julie headed up the social investment strategy at Calvert. She has held senior roles at the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, The Wilderness Society, and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Julie serves on the boards of the Endangered Species Coalition, E4theFuture, Clean Production Action, the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (US SIF) and is the board chair of the Sustainable Investments Institute. She holds a Ph.D. and a Master’s degree in resource economics from Michigan State University and has a Bachelor’s degree in forest management from Northern Arizona University.

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The transition will not be televised – Part 2

In the latest instalment of this series, we discuss the prospects for emerging technologies that can store and transform clean electricity

In the latest installment of this series, we discuss the prospects for emerging technologies that can store and transform clean electricity

20 Apr 2023

Charlie Donovan

Senior Economic Advisor

Charlie Donovan is a Senior Economic Advisor at Impax and Visiting Professor of Sustainable Finance at the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. Charlie’s role at Impax deepens the firm’s expertise in understanding the opportunities arising from a global energy transition. He contributes to Impax’s thought leadership initiatives and provides insights on North American policy developments to Impax’s clients and investment teams.

Before joining lmpax in 2022, Charlie was previously Professor of Practice at Imperial College London and Founding Executive Director of lmperial’s Centre for Climate Finance and Investment. In his corporate career, Charlie was Head of Structuring and Valuation for Global Power at BP plc and part of the team that launched BP Alternative Energy in 2005 with an $8 billion funding commitment. He began his career as an Energy Policy Analyst at the US Environmental Protection Agency during the Clinton Administration.

Charlie serves as academic co-chair of the Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment (CCRI), an investor body representing $20 trillion of assets under management, and is co-author and editor of Renewable Energy Finance: Powering the Future, now in its second edition. Charlie holds a BA from the University of Washington, an MBA from Vanderbilt University, and gained his doctoral degree from IE Business School.

Recent Insights

The transition will not be televised – Part 2

In the latest instalment of this series, we discuss the prospects for emerging technologies that can store and transform clean electricity

In the latest installment of this series, we discuss the prospects for emerging technologies that can store and transform clean electricity

20 Apr 2023
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