The sustainable investments of the Dutch Pensioenfonds Zorg en Welzijn (PFZW) have nothing to do with activism or a "left-wing hobby", according to its chair, Joanne Kellermann.

The pension fund for healthcare workers often publicises its work on sustainability, and recently announced that it was turning its attention to the largest users of fossil fuels.

Speaking at a recent conference in Brussels, Kellermann explained how the fund is increasingly investing on the basis of risk, return and sustainability.

"Our climate is changing faster than ever. As a pension fund, we are responsible not only for a good pension, but also for a world worth living in for our participants and their (grand)children".

Kellerman explained how PFZW looks at investments in the Netherlands to help its members understand sustainable investing. For example, its investment in affordable housing, of which the Netherlands has a severe shortage.

"With a good return on rental housing and by making it easier to find housing, participants see that their money is also working 'around the corner'. For a good retirement as well as for a nice and affordable place to live," said Kellerman.

She also noted that PFZW has divested from oil and gas companies that are not doing enough to meet the Paris climate goals.

"Not because we don't want to invest in fossil fuels, but because these companies didn't have a strong plan for transitioning to clean energy," she said.

Instead, PFZW is investing in SCW Systems, for example, a company that produces green gas and green hydrogen from vegetable, garden and fruit waste (VGF) and is developing techniques to store carbon dioxide.

She went on to say that the pension fund is committed to good pensions in a world worth living in.

"With this, we want to contribute to solving the challenges facing the world. Climate change, declining biodiversity, deforestation: it affects us all. We invest for a good return and a contribution to society. This is not activism or a left-wing hobby. It is purely about managing risks in the long term, in the interests of our participants. That is what makes sustainable investment by PFZW so important.”

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