The News / Published on .
In the fall of 2021, FÉRIQUE Fund Management received carbon neutral certification from LCL Environnement in recognition of its efforts to measure and to reduce the firm’s carbon footprint.
But this is only the first step toward implementation of a more comprehensive plan to reduce the carbon footprint of all our activities – and of an even broader vision of sustainable development.
This first step was carried out under the direction of LCL Environnement, which did an inventory of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions generated by our operations in 2019 and 2020. In accordance with the guiding principles of ISO-14064-1 and the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the inventory measured the amount of CO2 related to our energy consumption, including heating, electricity, personal vehicles and business travel.
To offset its emissions, FÉRIQUE Fund Management then turned to Planetair+ÉTS, which has been offering carbon credits with Gold Standard certified projects since 2015. For the purposes of carbon neutral certification, emissions related to employees’ commuting and Internet footprint can be excluded. FÉRIQUE Fund Management preferred to include them, however, in order to offset all its emissions, namely a total of 45.65 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020.
Carbon offsetting is a solution that makes it possible to reduce, capture, store or destroy GHGs in a sustainable and permanent way. It can take many forms, such as planting trees, producing renewable energy, protecting natural environments, destroying gases with high global warming potential or any other technique that reduces GHGs in the atmosphere.
Even though the purchase of carbon credits allows FÉRIQUE Fund Management to offset its carbon footprint, the firm also wants to achieve carbon neutrality through active, long-term reduction of its GHG emissions.
Reducing FÉRIQUE Fund Management’s carbon footprint is an extension to the Responsible Investment Policy introduced in 2016, which is itself in line with the FÉRIQUE Funds’ Proxy Voting Policy geared to ESG (environmental, social and governance) best practices. The policy has been in effect since 2006, which made FÉRIQUE Fund Management one of the first organizations in Quebec’s financial community to focus on the issue of responsible investment.
In addition to integrating ESG criteria into fund management, the Responsible Investment Policy stipulates that FÉRIQUE Fund Management undertakes to apply to its own operations the best practices it promotes to the companies in which it invests, particularly in the fight against climate change.
In recent years, significant efforts have been made, such as the creation of funds that contribute directly to sustainability and innovation. Achieving carbon neutrality in our own activities adds a more directly operational component to our efforts.
FÉRIQUE Fund Management’s efforts to achieve carbon neutrality are themselves part of a vision of sustainable development that the firm intends to communicate from 2022 on.
A number of initiatives are planned in various fields of action. We’ll be announcing more details in the coming months!
FÉRIQUE is a registered trademark of Gestion FÉRIQUE and is used under license by its subsidiary, Services d'investissement FÉRIQUE. Gestion FÉRIQUE is an Investment Fund Manager and assumes management duties in relation to the FÉRIQUE Funds. Services d'investissement FÉRIQUE is a Mutual Fund Dealer and a Financial Planning Firm, as well as the Principal distributor of the FÉRIQUE Funds. Please note that for commercial purposes, Services d'investissement FÉRIQUE is also known in English as FÉRIQUE Investment Services. There may be brokerage fees, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses associated with investment in the Funds. Management expense ratios vary from one year to another. Please read the prospectus before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their values fluctuate frequently and past performance may not be repeated.
FÉRIQUE Funds pay management fees to Gestion FÉRIQUE allowing it to assume the fees of the portfolio managers, the fees relating to the marketing or distribution of the FÉRIQUE Funds and the administration fees of the manager of the FÉRIQUE Funds. Each of the FÉRIQUE Funds also pays an Administration Fee to Gestion FÉRIQUE in exchange for all operating charges, except for specific Fund expenses as defined in the simplified prospectus. No commissions are payable by the unitholders for a subscription in the FÉRIQUE Funds if such subscription is made through Services d'investissement FÉRIQUE; brokerage fees could however be payable should the subscription be made through a broker other than the principal distributor.