Super funds are slowly moving on climate action – are your retirement savings still invested in climate destruction?

Where does your super fund stand?

Top 40 super funds

Fossil fuel free fund examples

Read the methodology and information about these tables

What we’ve learned and how it can help shift your super fund

1. Member pressure is powerful. Start by contacting your fund on this page, and we’ll work with you and other members to ramp up the pressure!

Major recent improvements in super funds’ approaches to climate change have come after members have stepped up their calls for action. 

We want to help you drive the next wave of fossil fuel divestment, so once you’ve taken the first step of contacting your fund through the form on this page, we’ll get in touch to find out how the fund responded and discuss plans to increase the pressure. You can also amplify the impact of your action by sharing it on social media, and encouraging friends, family, and anyone who will listen to join you in taking action.

The Market Forces-led UniSuper Divest campaign has seen more than 12,000 members join the call for their fund to dump dirty fossil fuel investments since January 2020. While the fund’s response so far leaves plenty of room for improvement, the campaign has already brought about divestment from thermal coal mining companies and a net-zero 2050 commitment.

Similarly, the recent Hesta and Aware Super climate policy shifts followed thousands of members engaging in campaigns run by Market Forces, Healthy Futures, and Doctors for the Environment Australia. Members of industry super funds will have many fellow members among your colleagues and wider industries. That leaves you perfectly placed to spread the word and build a groundswell of members calling on a fund to divest fossil fuels. 

We also know thousands of super fund members have made the decision to ditch their fund over climate inaction, choosing to shift their retirement savings to a fund that won’t invest their money in the coal, oil and gas companies that are undermining our chances of a stable climate future.

Join the thousands of super fund members taking action to align their retirement savings with their values

2. Some funds are finally realising engagement with pure fossil fuel companies is futile. Has your fund shifted its thinking?

While there is plenty more work to be done to get these funds to apply the same thinking to oil and gas companies, it’s great to see member pressure has helped force funds to rapidly shift their thinking. 

Our Out of Line, Out of Time report identifies the 22 companies that have failed to respond to investor engagement, and continue to actively undermine the Paris goals. You can see how much your super fund invests in these companies and take action on our Super funds table.

If your super fund is still clinging to the idea that it can engage with these companies to address climate change, you need to point out that it is quickly being left behind.

3. Long term goals can mask near term inaction.

Members are making it very clear to their funds that targets without immediate action to withdraw investment from the most polluting companies and industries are not good enough. As you push your super fund to lift its climate action game, be sure to set this expectation, and beware of long term goals being used to mask near term inaction!

Some funds, including Hesta, Aware Super, Cbus and UniSuper, have set targets to reduce the carbon emissions of their investment portfolios, including ‘net-zero by 2050’ along with some nearer term targets.

These targets are important, particularly those that require near term action (such as Aware Super’s target to reduce portfolio emissions by 30% by 2023), as they will require funds to either force companies to decrease emissions, or reduce their own investment exposure to those companies. This is particularly significant for major carbon polluters like AGL and Origin Energy.

However, super funds’ near-term emission reduction targets do not currently account for the emissions generated by the use of products sold by companies they invest in, known as scope 3 emissions. For example, gas producer Woodside’s scope 3 emissions in 2019 were more than 8 times larger than its operational emissions (scope 1 + 2), but these scope 3 emissions wouldn’t be covered by super funds’ current emission reduction targets.

Tell your super fund it must account for fossil fuels producers’ downstream emissions in any portfolio decarbonisation plans. This must be done by setting targets to reduce exposure to fossil fuel reserves, or putting in place plans to reduce investment in oil and gas producers over time, as Suncorp has done.

Take action – demand a comprehensive coal, oil and gas exit plan from your super fund

Taking it to the next level

One super fund member has also taken the extraordinary step of taking a $50 billion super fund to court. 

Mark McVeigh used Market Forces’ research to find out his super fund, Rest, was falling short of his expectations and lagging other funds on climate change. He has since launched a legal action, claiming the fund has failed to appropriately consider and manage the risks climate change poses to members’ retirement savings.

The case will be heard in early November, so watch this space for a court ruling on how super funds should be acting on climate risk.

Read more about Mark’s case.

Table methodology

Table shows the fund-wide investment exclusion policies (based on information publicly available on funds’ websites as at 29 September 2020) of the top 40 Australian super funds by assets under management, according to the latest APRA Superannuation Statistics. 

Four fossil fuel-free super funds, which are outside the top 40, are also presented to provide examples of comprehensive coal, oil and gas exclusion policies.

Coal exclusion policy categories:

1. Comprehensive – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving any revenue from thermal or coking coal mining, transport, or coal power generation
2. Some – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving 33% (or lower threshold) of revenue from thermal coal mining, or coal power generation
3. Minimal – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving 33% (or lower threshold) of revenue from thermal coal mining
4. None – No fund-wide exclusion policy

Oil and gas exclusion policy categories:

1. Comprehensive – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving any revenue from oil and gas production, power generation, refining / processing, or transport
2. Some – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving 33% (or lower threshold) of revenue from oil and gas production
3. Minimal – Fund-wide policy to exclude investments in companies deriving 33% (or lower threshold) from tar sand oil production and / or arctic oil extraction
4. None – No fund-wide exclusion policy

The information provided by Market Forces does not constitute financial advice. The information is presented in order to inform people motivated by environmental concerns and take actions based on those concerns. Market Forces is organising data for environmental ends.

The information and actions provided by Market Forces do not account for any individual’s personal objectives, financial situation or needs. It should not be used, relied upon, or treated as a substitute for specific professional advice.

Market Forces recommends all users obtain their own independent professional advice before making any decision relating to their particular requirements or circumstances. Switching super funds may have unintended financial consequences.

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