The financial services co-operative and Iveson
will work together to help build an investment market in
Canada focused on climate
resilience and adaptation
GUELPH, ON,
March 29, 2022 /CNW/ -
Co-operators, a leading Canadian financial services co-operative
and insurance company with over $61
billion in assets under management, announced the
appointment of former Mayor of Edmonton Don Iveson as Executive
Advisor, Climate Investing and Community Resilience. This position
was established to build momentum and capacity for a wave of new
investments in Canada that will
support climate adaptation projects and climate-resilient
infrastructure in communities across the country.
The new position will advance Co-operators efforts to catalyze
sustainable investing in Canada.
Currently, over 21% of its invested assets – more than $2.6 billion – are invested in impact investments
that provide solutions to pressing environmental and social
challenges. Co-operators has a target to invest 60% of its total
assets to support the transition to a sustainable, resilient,
low-emissions society by 2030.
Co-operators and Iveson aim to help reduce risk in Canadian
communities, in part by creating the conditions needed to increase
capital flows to fund climate adaptation infrastructure in
municipalities across the country. Communities will benefit
tangibly from such investments both financially and in terms of
environmental resilience and emotional peace of mind.
"As an insurer, we see the financial and emotional impacts of
climate change on our members, clients and communities," says
Rob Wesseling, president and CEO of
Co-operators. "As an investor, we can help build infrastructure and
support initiatives that improve the resilience of our communities.
Working together, with Don's first-hand understanding of the
challenges municipalities face and the opportunities that exist in
terms of climate solutions, we can now lay the groundwork for a new
model for climate-resilient investments in Canada."
For Iveson, the strategic partnership was an intuitive next step
in his career, and one that will build on his existing legacy as
Mayor of one of Canada's most
climate-conscious cities.
"In my time at Edmonton City
Hall, and as Chair of Canada's Big
City Mayors, I thrived on building coalitions to tackle complex
challenges like climate change. I also know the aging
infrastructure, the shortage of funding, and the gaps in capacity
facing local governments in tackling the impacts of our already
changing climate," says Iveson. "I am grateful to be working with
visionaries like Rob and his team at Co-operators who share strong
purpose when it comes to community resiliency. Bringing big data
risk modeling, engineering solutions and private investment to bear
to help towns, counties and cities contend with climate risks
requires precisely the kind of problem solving and coalition
building I love."
Wesseling and Iveson will be speaking together at an upcoming
panel on the topic of resilience investing at GLOBE Forum 2022 on
March 30, in Vancouver. On this panel, sharing the stage
with leaders from the United Nations Office of Disaster Risk
Reduction, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, and
Canada's Infrastructure Bank, they
will appeal to an array of multi-sector Canadian stakeholders on
the importance of building capacity and collaboration for
investments to flow towards projects that will make our communities
more climate-resilient and sustainable, better equipped to face the
increasing climate impacts that are already upon us.
About Don Iveson
Don served as Edmonton's 35th
Mayor from 2013 to 2021 with a guiding leadership principle to make
things better for the next generation. This long-termism is now
embedded in: Edmonton's smart
growth City Plan; City Council's Energy Transition Strategy and
first-in-Canada carbon budget, and
Edmonton's nation-leading
City-Wide Flood Mitigation Strategy.
Since retiring from municipal office, Don continues to live in
Edmonton. In addition to this role
with Co-operators, Don has accepted an appointment as a School of
Cities Canadian Urban Leader at the
University of Toronto. He is also
ramping up a public policy advisory practice working on climate,
housing, regional governance and civic innovation projects with
like-minded clients, including Co-operators. He also volunteers on
the board of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness.
As Mayor, Don's political leadership extended to the national
stage, serving as Chair of Canada's Big City Mayors for five years during
an unprecedented rise in the prominence of cities in the national
political landscape, as well as responding to the COVID crisis
which hit municipalities especially hard. His advocacy helped to
shape the National Housing Strategy and influence the Federal
Government to commit to ending chronic homelessness nationwide —
goals that cannot be achieved without robust partnerships with
cities. He also served as an Honourary Witness to the Truth and
Reconciliation Commission of Canada and implemented the first
trauma-informed all-staff Indigenous awareness and reconciliation
training program at a major Canadian city.
About Co-operators
Co-operators is a leading Canadian
financial services co-operative, offering multi-line insurance and
investment products, services, and personalized advice to help
Canadians build their financial strength and security. The company
has more than $61.5 billion in assets
under administration. Co-operators has been providing trusted
guidance to Canadians for the past 76 years. The organization is
well known for its community involvement and its commitment to
sustainability. Achieving carbon neutral equivalency in 2020, the
organization is committed to net-zero emissions in its operations
and investments by 2040, and 2050, respectively. Co-operators is
also ranked as a Corporate Knights' Best 50 Corporate Citizen in
Canada and is listed among the
Best Employers in Canada by
Kincentric. For more information, please visit:
www.cooperators.ca.
SOURCE The Co-operators Group Limited