Hermes Investment Management (Hermes), the £30.1 billion manager, has announced that it has joined the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.

The United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action in support of UN goals and issues embodied in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Known as a leader in responsibility, this follows the publication of the firm’s Modern Slavery statement and Supplier Code of Conduct earlier this year and the staff Pledge of transparency and responsibility, introduced in 2015. Further to this, Hermes EOS, the firm’s engagement and stewardship team, is a pioneering advisory service which enables its clients to be responsible investors and owners of companies, advising on more than $403.5bn of assets. Hermes EOS engages with companies to fulfil the UN Global Compact principles.

Saker Nusseibeh, Chief Executive, Hermes Investment Management said: “For over thirty years, responsible investing has been at the heart of Hermes and we are always looking for opportunities to develop and further embed our understanding of the impact our investments have on wider society. In September I will be leading a high-level roundtable discussion at the 2017 United Nations Private Sector Forum where I am looking forward to sharing some of the experiences Hermes has had and also learning from other leading businesses on how we can collectively build sustainable financial markets.

“We are committed to making the UN Global Compact and its principles part of the strategy, culture and day-to-day operations of our company, and to engaging in collaborative projects which advance the broader development goals of the United Nations, particularly the Sustainable Development Goals. We believe that this is not only the right thing to do but that sustainable growth creates a more sustainable financial ecosystem for the benefit of all.”

Source: Hermes