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The Robeco Capital Growth Funds have not been registered under the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, nor or the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended. None of the shares may be offered or sold, directly or indirectly in the United States or to any U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”)). Furthermore, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. (Robeco) does not provide investment advisory services, or hold itself out as providing investment advisory services, in the United States or to any U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S promulgated under the Securities Act).

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This website has been carefully prepared by Robeco. The information contained in this publication is based upon sources of information believed to be reliable. Robeco is not answerable for the accuracy or completeness of the facts, opinions, expectations and results referred to therein. Whilst every care has been taken in the preparation of this website, we do not accept any responsibility for damage of any kind resulting from incorrect or incomplete information. This website is subject to change without notice. The value of the investments may fluctuate. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If the currency in which the past performance is displayed differs from the currency of the country in which you reside, then you should be aware that due to exchange rate fluctuations the performance shown may increase or decrease if converted into your local currency. For investment professional use only. Not for use by the general public.

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01-24-2025 · Active Ownership Report

Ocean health engagement leads Q4 Active Ownership report

The aims of engagement with companies reliant on the ocean leads the Active Ownership team’s report into its activities during the fourth quarter of 2024.

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    Authors

  • Peter van der Werf - Head of Active Ownership

    Peter van der Werf

    Head of Active Ownership

Summary

  1. Ocean Health theme to focus on seafood, shipping and cruise companies

  2. Progress reports on Acceleration to Paris and Just Transition themes

  3. Concerns aired over shareholder rights in Italian Capital Markets Bill

The report also includes updates on the progress being made with two other engagement themes focusing on the Acceleration to Paris and the Just Transition, plus a synopsis on concerns of legislation that weakens shareholder rights in Italy.

The Ocean Health theme, launched in the fourth quarter but beginning in the first quarter of 2025, will see engagement with six companies – two each from the seafood, shipping and cruise industries. It aims to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, and mitigate ocean footprints. Comprising 70% of the Earth’s surface, our oceans play a vital role in the planet’s health and the global economy, but it’s an arena that is often overlooked by investors.

“A decade ago, we addressed modern slavery in the seafood industry in Thailand; this theme will focus on environmental health indicators of the ocean biome, and how companies affect them with their practices,” says Sylvia van Waveren, Robeco’s engagement specialist heading the theme.
“The world’s seas are both a food source and a place of economic activity, ranging from fisheries, shipping and tourism, to renewable energy. It is also increasingly being overexploited. The engagement with companies in three sectors that rely on the oceans – seafood, shipping and cruise lines – will aim to reduce their environmental and biodiversity footprints on this precious resource.”

Acceleration to Paris

To meet the Paris Agreement temperature goals, the Acceleration to Paris engagement theme begun in 2021 is now being extended to become an ‘evergreen’ theme.

In her report, engagement specialist Cristina Cedillo looks back on the progress made in 2024, when a majority of companies made commitments to switch to clean energy sources, and sets out the minimum expectations for continued engagement in 2025.

“The Acceleration to Paris engagement has enjoyed significant progress in gaining corporate commitments to phase out fossil fuels,” Cedillo says. “With many engagements successfully closed, we now need to look at companies scoring badly in our assessment of their alignment with the Paris goals.”

Just Transition

Moving to a low-carbon world requires action to affect those displaced by it. Shutting coal mines, for example, brings job losses for mining communities and cannot be done in isolation. To address the issue, the team began a ‘Just Transition’ engagement in the third quarter of 2023.

One year on, engagement specialist Ghislaine Nadaud reports on the progress made in the dialogues with six companies in two emerging markets, and the challenges ahead. She also details how the initiative will expand to the financial sector in 2025.

“Many companies have issued explicit commitments, while translating them into concrete actions remains a challenge,” she says. “Many seeds have now been planted in getting more companies committing to the transition. We’ll now expand the theme to cover the financial sector by look at the funding side of it as well.”

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The Italian job

Finally, the team has voiced its concerns over the Italian Capital Markets Bill, enacted in March 2024. The legislation aims to boost competitiveness but faces criticism for weakening minority shareholder rights and complicating governance.

“Our concerns include increased voting rights for loyalty shares, closed-door AGMs and a complex director election process,’’ says voting specialist Diana Trif. “But there may be some light at the end of the tunnel. Following an investor backlash means Italy is now considering revising the controversial rules.”

Essential part of SI

Engagement lies at the heart of everything that the Active Ownership team does at Robeco,” says Peter van der Werf, head of the team. We view regular and open dialogues with investee companies as an essential part of sustainable investing.”

“The fourth quarter saw the launch of a new engagement theme that will start in 2025, while making good progress with two other themes, both linked to climate change and the transition to a low-carbon economy.”

“As 2025 progresses, we look forward to updating clients and stakeholders with our engagement results and voting decisions as we continue our deep commitment to sustainability.”

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Active Ownership overview

Robeco

Robeco aims to enable its clients to achieve their financial and sustainability goals by providing superior investment returns and solutions.

Important information
The Robeco Capital Growth Funds have not been registered under the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, nor or the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended. None of the shares may be offered or sold, directly or indirectly in the United States or to any U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”)). Furthermore, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. (Robeco) does not provide investment advisory services, or hold itself out as providing investment advisory services, in the United States or to any U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S promulgated under the Securities Act).
This website is intended for use only by non-U.S. Persons outside of the United States (within the meaning of Regulation S promulgated under the Securities Act who are professional investors, or professional fiduciaries representing such non-U.S. Person investors. By clicking “I Agree” on our website disclaimer and accessing the information on this website, including any subdomain thereof, you are certifying and agreeing to the following: (i) you have read, understood and agree to this disclaimer, (ii) you have informed yourself of any applicable legal restrictions and represent that by accessing the information contained on this website, you are not in violation of, and will not be causing Robeco or any of its affiliated entities or issuers to violate, any applicable laws and, as a result, you are legally authorized to access such information on behalf of yourself and any underlying investment advisory client, (iii) you understand and acknowledge that certain information presented herein relates to securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act, and may be offered or sold only outside the United States and only to, or for the account or benefit of, non-U.S. Persons (within the meaning of Regulation S under the Securities Act), (iv) you are, or are a discretionary investment adviser representing, a non-U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S under the Securities Act) located outside of the United States and (v) you are, or are a discretionary investment adviser representing, a professional non-retail investor.


Access to this website has been limited so that it shall not constitute directed selling efforts (as defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act) in the United States and so that it shall not be deemed to constitute Robeco holding itself out generally to the public in the U.S. as an investment adviser. Nothing contained herein constitutes an offer to sell securities or solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities in any jurisdiction. We reserve the right to deny access to any visitor, including, but not limited to, those visitors with IP addresses residing in the United States. This website has been carefully prepared by Robeco. The information contained in this publication is based upon sources of information believed to be reliable. Robeco is not answerable for the accuracy or completeness of the facts, opinions, expectations and results referred to therein. Whilst every care has been taken in the preparation of this website, we do not accept any responsibility for damage of any kind resulting from incorrect or incomplete information. This website is subject to change without notice. The value of the investments may fluctuate. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If the currency in which the past performance is displayed differs from the currency of the country in which you reside, then you should be aware that due to exchange rate fluctuations the performance shown may increase or decrease if converted into your local currency. For investment professional use only. Not for use by the general public.