Their call to action came in a statement signed on Monday in Madrid, where countries are attending the UN COP25 conference to strengthen implementation of the 2015 treaty which seeks to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

“The global shift to clean energy is underway, but much more needs to be done by governments to accelerate the low carbon transition and to improve the resilience of our economy, society and the financial system to climate risks,” the investors wrote.

The Global Investor Statement to Governments on Climate Change urges action that includes phasing out thermal coal power, ending subsidies for fossil fuels, and updating and strengthening nationally-determined contributions (NDCs) to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Current commitments leave an “ambition gap” that will not prevent global average temperature from rising beyond the 1.5°C threshold, they warned.

The statement was developed by the seven founding partners of The Investor Agenda which was launched last year to scale up investor action in support of the transition to a low-carbon economy.

The 631 institutional investors who signed it oversee the assets of billions of beneficiaries worldwide, including pension funds.

“With the immense influence that these investors hold in our economy, government leaders ought to respond to this collective call to action with the urgency and ambition required to power a net-zero emissions economy”, said Mindy Lubber, CEO and President of Ceres, one of the seven founding partners of The Investor Agenda.

The other founders are the Asia Investor Group on Climate Change, CDP, the Investor Group on Climate Change, the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change, the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment network, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Finance Initiative.

Photo caption and credit:
World Bank/Nonie Reyes
A farmer in the Philippines inspects his rice crop after a flood. Increased flooding is expected due to climate change.