Waiho i te māhaka tī kia kore ai e motu Choose a fund to help you achieve your goals.
Whai Rawa is proud to offer Investor Choice. Investor Choice creates options for all whānau – no matter what your age, savings balance or life stage. You can choose a Fund that better reflects your personal needs and risk appetite. Choosing the right investment Fund is an important decision and may have a significant impact on your investment for your future education, whare or retirement. The Whai Rawa Unit Trust (the Scheme) is invested in Mercer Investment Trusts New Zealand’s Socially Responsible Conservative, Balanced and Growth Portfolio’s.
The Whai Rawa fund was historically invested in a standard Mercer conservative investment Fund that did not have socially responsible investing as a core requirement. In 2019, we expanded the offering to Mercer Investment Trusts New Zealand’s Socially Responsible Conservative, Balanced and Growth Portfolio’s.
What does socially responsible mean?
Socially responsible means sustainable and ethical investments. We live on an increasingly ecologically- stressed planet and there is rising concern over the impact of companies on individuals, the environment and communities. There is also a growing movement of investors who recognise the connection between investment and real-world impact. Socially responsible investors want their funds to reduce pollution or exploitation, and to invest in companies with high ethical standards. Even better, several studies have now shown that on average, responsible investing earns as much or more than conventional investing. Investing responsibly is as much about what we invest in, as what we don’t.
The fund manager (Mercer NZ Limited) has developed a framework which outlines how they assess what sectors or companies not to invest in on the basis of their failure to meet socially responsible investment criteria. Our change to socially responsible investing also means actively choosing to invest in assets which are likely to have a positive environmental impact, as well as delivering on financial objectives.
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING
Being socially responsible means seeking to invest in sectors where there are likely to be environmental and social benefits, such as those below, which broadly align with a number of global standards including the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
RENEWABLE AND ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
Solar, wind, wave, biofuels, and geothermal technology.
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Storage plus power network, industry, building, and transport efficiency.
WATER INFRASTRUCTURE AND TECHNOLOGIES
Irrigation, storage, treatment, drainage and flood protection.
POLLUTION CONTROL
Pollution control solutions and environmental testing.
WASTE MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGIES
Recycling processing, hazardous and general waste management.
HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES
Positive impacts for social development and poverty or aging population.
SUSTAINABLE CONSUMER GOODS
Meeting shifting consumer demands in sourcing and technology.
RESPONSIBLE FINANCE
Supporting more transparent, inclusive, equitable, and sustainable financial market decisions.
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE EXCLUSION CRITERIA
The socially responsible funds available through Mercer Investment Trusts New Zealand exclude companies that undertake the following activities.
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT
More than 10% revenue from adult entertainment-related business activities.
ALCOHOL
More than 10% revenue from alcohol-related business activities.
CONTROVERSIAL WEAPONS
Any revenue derived from direct involvement in the development and production (manufacture), sale or distribution of civilian (semi-) automatic firearms; cluster munitions; anti-personnel mines; and biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. [(Semi-) Automatic exclusions applied in July 2019].
FOSSIL FUELS
More than 20% revenue from the extraction of thermal coal and/or tar sands oil.
GAMBLING
More than 10% revenue from gambling-related business activities.
TOBACCO
Any revenue derived from complete tobacco product manufacturing and more than 10% revenue from tobacco-related transport, packaging and retail business activities.