NewsmakersDecember 9, 2022

Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Names Anna Murray Head of Sustainable Investing

The former head of ESG at Sun Life Capital Management will lead the $178.6 billion pension fund’s climate strategy.

Reported by Michael Katz

The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board has named Anna Murray global head of sustainable investing and senior managing director.

The C$242.5 billion ($178.6 billion) pension fund has tasked Murray, who started on December 5, with executing Ontario Teachers’ climate strategy, corporate governance activities including proxy voting and public company engagements and overseeing its approach to impact investing.

The pension fund pledged in early 2021 to become net-zero in carbon emissions by 2050. Murray will also oversee corporate governance activities, including proxy voting and public company engagements, as well as the integration and assessment of environmental, social and governance investments within the pension fund’s portfolio.

Murray joins Ontario Teachers’ from Sun Life Capital Management, where she was global head of ESG and was responsible for integrating ESG risk management and value creation practices into investment decisions and management. She was also global head of ESG at BentallGreenOak, SLC Management’s real estate investment manager.

She is also co-chair of the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment’s real estate advisory committee and co-chair of the environmental committee at the Pension Real Estate Association. Additionally, she is on the board of directors for the Responsible Investment Association and the Canada Green Building Council.

Ontario Teachers’ reported earlier this year that it invested more than C$3 billion in green assets in 2021, including acquiring from NextEra Energy Resources a 50% stake in a portfolio of 13 wind, solar and energy storage assets in the U.S. The organization is also looking to increase its green investments to C$50 billion from approximately C$33 billion.

“Sustainable investing is a key part of Ontario Teachers’ strategy as it generates positive, real-world impacts while supporting long-term value creation for our members,” Ziad Hindo, Ontario Teachers’ chief investment officer, said in a statement. “We look forward to Ms. Murray and her team helping us meet our impact-related commitments, as well as continu[ing] to evolve our approach and build on our leadership in sustainable investing.”