Sustainability: research working parties

Biodiversity is being lost at an unprecedented rate (a mass extinction). The economic or financial impact of this loss is unknown. There is an increasing amount of work focusing on how business and government decision-making can account for biodiversity through concepts such as natural capital valuation. This is an important topic on which there has been little actuarial discussion. The Biodiversity & Natural Capital Risk Working Party will include (contested) concepts such as natural capital and valuation of ecosystem services. This is a crucial focus for the draft Environment Bill in the UK Government and so a significant increase in policy and regulation is expected to follow on from this Bill.

The Biodiversity working party has formed four subgroups to consider a range of Biodiversity issues including Zoonotic disease / Covid-19, natural capital, valuation metrics, and justice.

Planned outputs

• An education of actuarial volunteers on natural capital valuation approaches and biodiversity
• An informed input into DEFRA and/or UN consultation on the role of, or impact to, business from biodiversity changes

About

Chair: Aled Jones
Established: 2020

This group will examine the impact of mortality and morbidity of climate change perils.

About

Chair: Eric Ofosu-Hene
Established: 2023

The aim of the group is to provide important information and guidance on this issue which impacts a wide range of actuarial work.

About

Chair: Alex Darsley
Established: 2024

Overarching aim of the working party

1. Educate: collate information to provide actuaries with resources to improve their understanding of what net zero means for an investment portfolio, and the key mechanisms to achieve this, as well as key challenges to date and the future outlook for development. This will enable more actuaries who work in investments to play a role in the transition of investment portfolios to net zero.
2. Thought leadership: Produce research to develop the profession’s understanding of what net zero means for an investment portfolio, and how it can be executed. This will drive forward the net zero agenda and equip actuaries working in investment teams with the knowledge and understanding they need to drive the transition.

About

Chair: Ruth Bryson
Established: 2022

This working party plans to:

• Identify commonalities across the range of sustainability disclosure requirements, frameworks and voluntary reports that IFoA actuaries may be exposed to (including CSRD, IFRS S1 & S2, TPT, regional requirements from PRA, BMA, MAS, OSFI, FINMA and voluntary requirements including TCFD, TNFD, ClimateWise, CDP)
• Identify best practice reporting approaches to meet common requirements simply and efficiently.
• Discuss how actuaries can communicate the benefits of disclosure and support wider sectors. 

About

Chair: Lloyd Richards
Established: 2025