CPP Investments appoints first sustainability officer

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) has appointed its first sustainability officer, the pension fund manager said in a release on Wednesday.

Deborah Orida, who was named chief sustainability officer, will be responsible for environmental, social and governance matters, with a particular focus on climate change.

“Climate change, which was only on the horizon when CPP Investments was established nearly 25 years ago, has become the defining issue of our time,” said John Graham, president and CEO of CPP Investments, in the release.

“We are focused on seizing the tremendous investment opportunities, as well as managing the risks, brought about by climate change,” he added.

Orida said in the release that CPP Investments has “recognized the importance of, and challenge posed by, climate change for nearly 15 years and has been a leader in pressing the market for better standards in areas such as disclosure and investing in assets and companies for the economy transition.”

She’ll maintain her role as senior managing director and global head of real assets, the release said. As such, the sustainable investing group will move from the active equities department to real assets while continuing to have an enterprise-wide mandate.

The real assets department has supported economic sustainability with its investments, the release said, including more than $7 billion of renewables, 403 green buildings, and decarbonization technologies and services.

Orida joined CPP Investments 12 years ago from Goldman Sachs, and has held senior leadership roles during her tenure at the pension fund.

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