We offer Socially Conscious options for members who prefer to limit investments in particular industries and companies considered to have negative impacts on the environment or society.
Key points:
- We offer four Socially Conscious investment options.
- Our Socially Conscious investment options are managed according to specific restrictions and exclusions. These are known as screens.
- The screens describe the types of investments that are intended to be excluded from these options.
- Our screens are grouped into 3 categories:
- climate change screens
- ethical screens
- conventions and controversies-based screens.
- Each of the Socially Conscious options has been certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia.
- You can invest all or part of your super into one or more of these options.
- More details can be found in the relevant Product Disclosure Statement or Handbook
Explore our four Socially Conscious investment options
We have four diversified Socially Conscious options. You can choose to invest all or part of your super into one or more of these options. The options available will depend on the type of account you have with us.
Future Saver and Retirement Transition accounts
Retirement Income accounts
Like our Core diversified investment options, these options are invested across a range of:
- asset classes
- asset types (listed and unlisted)
- investment managers, and
- investment styles.
They are also managed in accordance with the fund's Responsible Ownership approach.
How we manage Socially Conscious investments
The Socially Conscious options seek to avoid or restrict a range of investments considered to have a negative environmental or social impact. They are managed with specific restrictions and exclusions known as screens.
We partner with specialist external investment managers to help us manage some of the investments for these options.
You can learn more about how we manage our Socially Conscious investment options by reading the Investment & Fees Handbook (PDF, 3.1MB) (for Future Saver accounts) or the Retirement Income PDS(PDF, 5.4MB) (for Retirement Transition and Retirement Income accounts).
What we limit or exclude
There are industries and companies we limit or exclude from our Socially Conscious options. Our screens are grouped into 3 categories:
- climate change
- ethical
- conventions and controversies.
Our Investment team may also decide to exclude companies for other reasons outside of our formal criteria.
More information on each screen is shown below. Companies involved in the activities listed are excluded from the Socially Conscious options, provided the threshold is met.
However, please note that:
- Up to 5% of the private equity asset class may be invested in companies and other entities not meeting the screening criteria, other than the tobacco, nicotine-alternatives and tobacco-based products, and controversial weapons screens.
- The screening criteria does not apply to the use of derivatives which may have an indirect exposure to these types of investments.
- The application of the screens is undertaken in a manner that means continuous application of the screens may not be achieved. This may result in inadvertent holdings, typically over the short term, in investments we are seeking to exclude. If an investment is identified as not meeting the criteria, it will be sold or removed from the investment option(s) as soon as reasonably practicable, subject to liquidity constraints.
- Unless otherwise stated, companies that provide goods or services to companies generating revenue from the activities described, or that are involved in the distribution of these products, are not excluded.
We rely on the data provided by ISS STOXX to apply the screening criteria for the Socially Conscious options for the Australian shares, international shares and fixed income asset classes. For information on the methodology that ISS applies in generating their data, please refer to their website. The documents that are most relevant include the ‘Energy & Extractives’, ‘Controversial Weapons Research’ and ‘Sector-Based Screening’ methodology and research process papers.^
^ Note that these document titles may change as ISS STOXX may update their website from time to time.
Climate change screens
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| Screen | Description | Threshold* |
|---|---|---|
| Coal1 | Thermal, energy and metallurgical coal mining, extraction, production, refining and processing. | 5% or more of revenue |
| Coal fired power generation | Thermal coal power generation. | 5% or more of revenue |
| Oil and gas (conventional/ unconventional) | Oil and gas exploration, production, refining and marketing - includes conventional oil, unconventional oil (including oil sands, tar sands, shale oil), as well as conventional and unconventional gas (including Coal Seam Gas and shale gas). Oil and gas power generation for commercial purposes. |
5% or more of revenue |
| Fossil fuel transportation | Includes fossil fuel (coal, oil and gas) storage & transportation including pipelines, storage tanks, freight, rail and ports. | 5% or more of revenue |
| Fossil fuel supply chain and services | Directly owning and/or supplying fossil fuel (coal, oil and gas) mining equipment, oil & gas equipment & services. Companies that provide services to the fossil fuel industry whose purpose is to support the transition to the low carbon economy are not included as part of this criteria. |
5% or more of revenue |
| Fossil fuel reserves | Companies that hold fossil fuel reserves (whether proven or probable) with the intention of exploration and/or development of those reserves for revenue generation (rather than for own use). | No threshold (i.e. any company holding reserves for the purpose described) |
* This is the level that must be met for a company or investment to be excluded.
1 There is a fund-wide exclusion for companies generating 10% or more of their revenues directly from mining thermal or energy coal. A lower threshold of 5% is applied to the Socially Conscious options. The exclusion is extended to other forms of coal, such as metallurgical coal. The Socially Conscious screen also incorporates extraction, production, refining, processing and mining, and applies to all investments other than derivatives.
Ethical screens
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| Screen | Description | Threshold* |
|---|---|---|
| Tobacco, nicotine alternatives2 and tobacco-based products3 | Production/manufacture of tobacco, nicotine alternatives and tobacco-based products. | No threshold (i.e. companies generating any revenue from the manufacture and/or production of tobacco products, nicotine alternatives and tobacco-based products) |
| Gambling | Production, distribution or provision of services in relation to gambling | 5% or more of revenue |
| Alcohol | Production of alcohol | 5% or more of revenue |
| Pornography | Production and/or distribution of pornography | 5% or more of revenue |
| Uranium | Uranium mining | 5% or more of revenue |
| Nuclear power | Nuclear power production and/ or generation | 5% or more of revenue |
| Civilian firearms | Production and/or distribution of civilian firearms and related services | 5% or more of revenue |
| Live animal exports | Owning and/or operating live animal export operations | No threshold (i.e. companies generating any revenue from live animal exports) |
* This is the level that must be met for a company or investment to be excluded.
2 Nicotine alternatives and tobacco-based products include: (i) electronic nicotine delivery systems as defined by the US Food and Drug Administration (for example, ‘vaping’ devices, e-cigarettes) alternatively described as nicotine vaping products; (ii) dissolvable and non-combustible tobacco products (for example, nicotine pouches, snuff); and (iii) shisha and water pipes.
3 There is a fund-wide exclusion for companies generating 5% or more of their revenue from the manufacture and or production of tobacco products. However, the Socially Conscious screen has no threshold and incorporates companies generating revenue from nicotine alternatives. The Socially Conscious screen also applies to all investments other than derivatives.
Conventions and controversies-based screens
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| Screen | Description | Threshold* |
|---|---|---|
| Controversial weapons4 | Companies that derive any revenue from the manufacture and/or production of controversial weapons. Controversial weapons means chemical weapons, cluster munitions, anti-personnel mines, depleted uranium and companies involved in the development, production and maintenance of nuclear weapons. Note that this screen applies to companies manufacturing whole systems only (i.e. these weapons in their entirety) and does not apply to companies assembling these types of weapons where one or more components are manufactured by another company. In addition, it does not apply to companies involved in the deployment of these types of weapons such as aviation companies. |
No threshold (i.e. companies generating any revenue from controversial weapons) |
| Corporate controversies | Companies consistently involved in very severe incidents/ corporate controversies, or that are believed to be at high risk of being involved in serious incidents in the future. | Exclusion is at Aware Super's discretion |
* This is the level that must be met for a company or investment to be excluded.
4 While there is a fund-wide exclusion in relation to controversial weapons, the Socially Conscious screen also incorporates companies involved in the development, production and maintenance of nuclear weapons and applies to all investments other than derivatives.
Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) certification
The four Socially Conscious investment options have been certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia under the Responsible Investment Certification Program.
The Certification Symbol signifies that a product or service offers an investment style that takes into account certain environmental, social, governance or ethical considerations. The Symbol also signifies that the Aware Super High Growth Socially Conscious, Balanced Socially Conscious, Conservative Balanced Socially Conscious and Conservative Socially Conscious options adhere to the strict operational and disclosure practices required under the Responsible Investment Certification Program for the category of Superfund Option. The Certification Symbol is a Registered Trade Mark of the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA).
Detailed information about RIAA, the Symbol and Aware Super’s methodology and performance can be found at responsiblereturns.com.au, together with details about other responsible investment products certified by RIAA.
The Responsible Investment Certification Program does not constitute financial product advice. Neither the Certification Symbol nor RIAA recommends to any person that any financial product is a suitable investment or that returns are guaranteed. Appropriate professional advice should be sought prior to making an investment decision. RIAA does not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence.
Things to consider
- The exclusion of certain sectors and investments will impact the returns of the Socially Conscious options when those sectors perform well or poorly.
- While a Socially Conscious option may align with your personal preferences, you should also consider if it meets your financial goals and attitude to risk.