ESG Advisory Group Remit

Overall Remit

To advise the Vice-Principal Corporate Services on all aspects of the development and delivery of social and environmental investments (excluding endowment fund sustainable investments managed by the Investment Committee) including:

  • social investment strategy and management of the dedicated Social Investment Fund (SIF)
  • delivery of the 5-year social enterprise and social investment strategy
  • providing recommendations to the Sustainability, Civic and Social Responsibility (SCSR) Committee on matters of strategy, priority and commercial decisions associated with these issues including thematic priorities, and measurement of impact.

Key Tasks:

  1. Advise on the development of a social investment strategy and associated Social Investment Fund to deliver agreed objectives including capital protection and overall CPI+1.5% mandate in line with original Court agreement
  2. Assess potential social investments and provide strategic, financial and commercial advice on investment including fit to University objectives, risks and opportunities including commercial, city deal and other investment priorities
  3. Ensure an effective pipeline of projects is generated, and effective and rigorous due diligence of proposals with expert scrutiny prior to proposed approval by delegated budget holder
  4. Ensure effective reporting on investment performance to investment committee, SCSR committee and other bodies as required and provide active monitoring and effective risk management
  5. Explore opportunities for co-funding and other sources of income to support the proposals
  6. Oversee the effective implementation of the 5-year social enterprise and social investment strategy on behalf of the University
  7. Agree an impact framework for the measurement of social and environmental impact for social investments, consistent with emerging measures of university wide impact.

Proposed Membership

Catherine Martin (Chair), Vice-Principal Corporate Services

Terry Fox, Deputy Director of Finance

Dave Gorman, Director of SRS

Professor Lesley McAra, AP Community Relations and EFI Director

Ashley Shannon, Director of Operations, Corporate Services Group

Mark Graham, Lead Economist, DDI

Jim Roth, External member, Investment Committee representative

Jim Madden, Treasury Manager

Gemma Gourlay, Head of Social Impact 

Previous meeting

ESG Advisory Group September 2023 meeting (Wednesday, 20 September 2023, 10.30am - 12.30pm)